President Xi Jinping of the People's Republic of China and his wife, Madame Peng Liyuan, arrived in Washington on Wednesday, September 24, 2026, for a state visit that included a military ceremony and cultural exchanges.
The State Arrival Ceremony on the South Lawn featured performances by the U.S. Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, the Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon, and the Marine Drum and Bugle Corps, concluding with a military flyover including a B-2 Spirit bomber and four F-22 Raptors.
First Lady Melania Trump hosted Madame Peng for a cultural program at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art, where they viewed artifacts spanning centuries of artistic achievement. The visit included a notched jade disk from China's Shang dynasty, the Peacock Room created by American artist James McNeill Whistler, and an 18th-century Qianlong-period Chinese porcelain vase. The program concluded with a performance by the youth choir from Hope Chinese School.
A state dinner was held in the East Room of the White House that evening. On Friday morning, Trump and Xi met for tea in the Red Room, followed by a visit to the National Archives, where they viewed records and documents related to America's 250th birthday and the history of U.S.-China relations.