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William Zheng

When Xi Jinping sits down with US President Donald Trump in Washington on Thursday, the Chinese leader’s side of the table will be filled with senior aides bringing extensive policy expertise.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Monday that Xi would pay a state visit to the United States from Wednesday to Friday.
The trip – Xi’s first state visit to Washington since 2015 – will also mark his second face-to-face meeting this year with Trump, as the world’s top two economies seek to stabilise a relationship tested by trade, technology and national security disputes.
A look at Sino-American summits over the past decade offers insight as to who from the Chinese side will be in the room.


The president’s aides
The innermost circle is likely to include Xi’s chief of staff, Cai Qi, who oversees the Chinese leader’s administrative and security coordination.
Cai is a Politburo Standing Committee member, first secretary of the ruling Communist Party’s secretariat, and director of the Central General Office. He has served right next to Xi on almost all the Chinese leader’s trips within China and abroad.
While Cai is not a diplomat himself, he has always been seated at Xi’s right at high-profile summits. He has also received some important US figures in recent years, including Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman in Beijing in 2024.
Tang Fangyu, the newly appointed director of the Central Policy Research Office – the party’s top policy research body – is also likely to be there, as his predecessors have been.
Lu Luhua, a top personal secretary to Xi handling foreign affairs, is almost certain to appear alongside Xi during the Washington visit, consistent with past protocol.
The diplomatic apparatus
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will certainly be in the Chinese delegation, leading Beijing’s diplomatic apparatus with several of his top lieutenants.




The senior envoys expected to join the summit table are likely to include Ma Zhaoxu, executive vice-minister of foreign affairs, who visited Washington in July to pave the way for Xi’s visit.
Others include Xie Feng, China’s ambassador to the US, serving as the main liaison between Washington and Beijing; Hong Lei, the Chinese foreign ministry’s protocol chief; and Cai Wei, an assistant minister of foreign affairs.
The economic and trade command
The country’s top economic officials will join the Chinese delegation, as they help Beijing navigate complex trade negotiations, technology controls, as well as fiscal and financial alignments.
Beijing’s economic team in Washington will be anchored by Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng, China’s economic and financial hand, who arrived a few days before Xi did for talks with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
Expect Zheng Shanjie, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), to be among the top economic and financial bigwigs to join China’s side of the negotiating table. The NDRC is China’s top economic planning agency, guiding macroeconomic strategy and industrial policy discussions.
Others include Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, who oversees bilateral trade, market access and commercial frictions, and Finance Minister Lan Foan, who oversees financial working groups and macro-fiscal policy alignment.
The military angle
Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun could join the Chinese team as Beijing’s liaison official for bilateral military talks, as both sides seek to strengthen military-to-military ties.
Dong sat on the Chinese side of the table during Trump’s visit to Beijing in May as the counterpart of US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth.


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A look at past Sino-US summits offers insight, with trusted presidential aides and policy expertise expected to take centre stage


A look at past Sino-US summits offers insight, with trusted presidential aides and policy expertise expected to take centre stage.


Who from China’s side will be in the room at this week’s Xi-Trump summit?

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}A look at past Sino-US summits offers insight, with trusted presidential aides and policy expertise expected to take centre stage

A look at past Sino-US summits offers insight, with trusted presidential aides and policy expertise expected to take centre stage