China's President Xi Jinping to make official US visit this week

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced that President Xi Jinping will visit the United States from September 23 to 25, following an invitation from US President Donald Trump.

According to US officials, President Trump is preparing to personally welcome his Chinese counterpart upon his arrival in the United States on Wednesday.

Trump is expected to greet Xi at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington when Xi's plane lands, a departure from the usual protocol in which the US president typically receives foreign leaders at the White House.

Xi's visit will begin on Wednesday, September 23, and continue through September 25. The main events are scheduled for Thursday, September 24, when Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will host President Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, at the White House for an official ceremony, including a military honor guard in the Rose Garden, followed by a meeting between the two presidents and a formal state dinner.

This marks the first state visit by a Chinese president to the United States in over a decade. Xi's last state visit was in 2015, when he was received by then-President Barack Obama. Xi also previously met Trump at the Mar-a-Lago resort in 2017.