- The Chinese Foreign Ministry says Vice President Han Zheng will attend Donald Trump’s inauguration.
- Trump’s team said in December it had invited Chinese leader Xi Jinping, but Xi will not attend.
- Foreign heads of state do not usually attend US presidential inaugurations.
China’s Foreign Ministry says it will send Vice President Han Zheng to attend the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump on January 20.
Trump’s transition team said last month it had invited Chinese leader Xi Jinping to the event. The move came as a surprise given that foreign heads of state do not typically attend US presidential inaugurations.
“China follows the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and beneficial cooperation in viewing and enhancing its relations with the United States,” the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement Friday morning local time, announcing Han’s attendance. .
The statement said China is “willing to work with the new US government to improve dialogue and communication” and “jointly pursue a stable, healthy and stable China-US relationship”.
The White House, Trump’s transition team, the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies and the Chinese foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
‘A communication channel’
International relations experts told BI that the move to send Han to Trump’s inauguration is a positive sign for US-China relations.
“Han’s participation is important, and even though the vice president does not really hold political power, it is still important, and he will certainly be able to play the role of an interlocutor and a channel of communication,” Dylan Loh, an assistant professor . at Nanyang Technological University, BI told.
“Symbolically, Han’s presence for Trump’s inauguration is also important to underscore that political communication and cooperation is possible despite campaign rhetoric and the threat of tariffs,” Loh added.
Han’s visit to the US also allows China to “respectfully accept Trump’s invitation without sending too strong a signal or doing anything too unconventional,” said Austin Strange, associate professor in the university’s department of politics and public administration. of Hong Kong.
“The Chinese government prefers a better, more stable relationship with the United States and could signal an initially friendly attitude toward the new administration without making any concrete commitments by sending a representative such as Han,” Strange added.
Ian Ja Chong, an associate professor at the National University of Singapore, told BI that while Han’s presence suggests “respect for Trump and the invitation”, he is not a member of China’s Politburo Standing Committee, the Communist Party’s top decision-maker Chinese. the body.
“This somewhat insulates the CCP and the Politburo Standing Committee from blame if US-PRC relations do not turn out as the CCP and Xi would prefer,” Chong said.
“The PRC is willing to respect Trump and put relations on a positive footing, but is not willing to engage with the Trump administration on substantive issues at the inauguration,” he added.
Trump made tariff threats during the campaign
US-China relations have been tenuous since Trump’s first term, with the Trump and Biden administrations imposing tariffs on China.
In May, President Joe Biden announced an increase in tariffs on steel, aluminum, medical products and electric vehicles exported from China.
Those tariffs could rise even further when Trump takes office. During his campaign, Trump said he plans to impose tariffs of more than 60% on Chinese goods entering the US.
In November, Trump said he plans to impose an additional 10% import tariff on Chinese goods unless China does more to curb the flow of fentanyl into the US.
In January, Trump said in an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt that his representatives have spoken with Xi’s staff.
“I had a great relationship with President Xi. It was very solid, very strong, very friendly. He’s a strong man, a powerful man,” Trump told Hewitt in an interview that aired Jan. 6.
“He’s certainly respected in China, but they have problems and I think we’ll probably get along very well, I predict, but you know it’s got to be a two-way street,” Trump added.
Business leaders, including Elon Musk, Jeff BezosMark Zuckerberg, Sundar Pichai and Shou Chew are planning to attend Trump’s inauguration on January 20. Meanwhile, American companies, including Amazon, Google and Meta, have made $1 million in donations to Trump’s inauguration fund.
