Chinese leader Xi Jinping may not have personally accepted US President-elect Donald Trump’s invitation to his inauguration, but Beijing has taken the rare step of dispatching a top official to join the swearing-in ceremony in Washington.

China's Vice President Han Zheng will attend President-elect Trump's inauguration, signaling Beijing's willingness to ease tensions and foster dialogue despite previous confrontations and Trump's campaign rhetoric against China.

Trump advisor Elon Musk has longstanding business ties in China.

Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Sam Altman and many more—one was missing: Jensen Huang, founder and chief executive of chip company Nvidia. He is spending time t

Meanwhile, a slew of other tech executives including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg are reportedly set to attend the events on Monday.

Vice President Han Zheng, China’s representative at Donald Trump’s inauguration, is a trusted adviser to President Xi Jinping.

Chinese President Xi Jinping was the first foreign leader whose invitation to the inauguration became public in December ... Han Zheng attends a meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Jan. 11, 2025. (Florence Lo/Pool Photo via AP, File ...

Vice President Han Zheng will represent China at Donald Trump's inauguration on Monday, signalling a potential thaw in Washington-Beijing relations.View on euronews

Han has used the visit to meet with members of the American business community, including Tesla CEO and close Trump associate Elon Musk, according to Chinese state agency Xinhua. Musk is widely thought to be seen by Beijing as more sympathetic to its interests than others in Trump’s orbit.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping may not have personally accepted US President-elect Donald Trump’s invitation to his inauguration, but Beijing has taken the rare step of dispatching a top official to ...

Chinese leader Xi Jinping may not have personally accepted U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s invitation to his inauguration, but Beijing has taken the rare step of dispatching a top official ...

Analysts say it the proposal was likely rhetorical rather than genuine, with little chance Beijing would ever take up such a deal.