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| Date | September 22 to 28, 2015 |
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| Venue | Seattle,Washington D.C.,New York City |
The2015 state visit of Xi Jinping to the United States, which was from September 22 to 28, 2015, was thestate visit ofChina'sparamount leaderXi Jinping to theUnited States. It was his seventh visit to the United States and his first visit after succeeding theGeneral Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party in 2012. During his visit, Xi attended the US–China Internet Industry Forum, metUS PresidentBarack Obama and attended the 70th anniversary of theUnited Nations.
Xi's visit occurred at a time of high tensions in the bilateral relationship.[1]The Wall Street Journal quoted experts who said Xi's US visit was to promote domestic technology companies and to ask the US government to not retaliate in response to accusations that his country had engaged in hacking activities.[2]
Before Xi's visit, theCongressional-Executive Commission on China held a hearing on human rights. Experts and members of Congress in attendance called on President Obama to ask Xi Jinping to stop the persecution ofTibetans,Uyghurs, religious groups,non-governmental organizations, intellectuals, democracy advocates, and supporters of "universal suffrage" in Hong Kong.[3]
Prior to the 2015 visit, Xi had visited the United States six times. His first visit was as part of a corn industry delegation to the state ofIowa in 1985.[4]
On September 22, 2015,Xi Jinping, and his wife,Peng Liyuan, arrived atPaine Field and stepped off anAir China aircraft at about 9:30 am (Pacific Daylight Time). Before his arrival at theWestin Seattle, protesters gathered downtown to highlight the Chinese government's human rights abuses and to voice other concerns, includingFalun Gong practitioners. Supporters of Xi were also present with Chinese flags. Both protesters and supporters dispersed by the end of the night.[5]
In the evening, Xi attended a banquet speech at the Westin Seattle Hotel where he met with Washington GovernorJay Inslee, Mayor of SeattleEd Murray, SenatorPatty Murray, CongressmanRick Larsen, and former Ambassador to ChinaGary Locke. In his speech, he touched on several sensitive topics, includingcybersecurity, currency devaluation and his country's economy. Xi's speech cited elements ofAmerican culture, includedSleepless in Seattle and the poetWalt Whitman. He also talked about his teenage years working on a farm inYanchuan County, Shaanxi, China, during theCultural Revolution and linked this to theChinese Dream. Xi reiterated that China was againstcurrency wars and would not lower therenminbi rate to boost exports.[5][6] On the topic of hisanti-corruption reforms, Xi said, "It has nothing to do with a power struggle. In this case, there's noHouse of Cards" – a reference to theNetflix political drama, which tops the list of most illegally downloaded shows in China.[5][7]
On the second day of his trip, Xi visitedBoeing Everett Factory and viewed the final assembly lines for theBoeing 787 Dreamliner,Boeing 777 andBoeing 747-8. Xi announced that China would buy 300Boeing aircraft, included 250 single-aisleBoeing 737s and 50 widebody jets for US$38 billion. He also announced that Boeing would build its first non-US factory inZhoushan,Zhejiang, China.[8][9][10][11] The Chinese companyInspur andCisco Systems said they would jointly sell networking technologies and products in China.[10]
After his Boeing visit, Xi attended an Internet industry forum held at the headquarters ofMicrosoft, located inRedmond. He said China would prioritize Internet security and defended self-governance at the country level with respect to Internet regulations. Thirty US and Chinese technology executives attended this forum and posed for a photo with Xi and Chief of the State Internet Information OfficeLu Wei, includingApple's CEOTim Cook,Amazon.com's CEOJeff Bezos,Alibaba's CEOJack Ma, and Microsoft's CEOSatya Nadella.[12][13] Before the photograph, Facebook Chief ExecutiveMark Zuckerberg spoke to Xi in Mandarin.[12] On September 21,The Washington Post reported that technology executives were recommended to attend this forum, or risk their companies facing greater regulatory scrutiny in China.[14]
After visiting Microsoft, he met withBill andMelinda Gates as well as senior executives and board members of the company. He previewed new technologies in development by Microsoft. Nadella gifted him a3D printed model of theLiulinhai, the first Chinese ship to dock in the United States, in Seattle, in 1979 after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the US and the People's Republic of China.[15]
In the afternoon, Xi Jinping visitedLincoln High School inTacoma, Washington.[16] Lincoln's football players presented Xi with a Lincoln Abes jersey emblazoned with the number "1". Xi reciprocated with gifts of books and ping-pong equipment. He also invited 100 Lincoln High students to visit China in 2016. During this visit, the adherents of Falun Gong and Vietnamese protesters held up signs such as "Stop Red China's Violations" and shouted slogans such as "Down with Red China".[11]
Xi attended a forum hosted by the Paulson Foundation, an economic think tank founded byHenry Paulson.[17] He also attended a dinner organized by local Chinese groups.[18]
Xi and Peng left Seattle and flew to Washington, D.C., on September 24.[11] They arrived atJoint Base Andrews and were greeted by United States Vice PresidentJoe Biden. After the greeting, a band played the national anthems of both countries. Xi then made his way toBlair House where he and President Obama shared a private working dinner at.[19]
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On September 25, Xi Jinping arrived at theWhite House.PresidentBarack Obama welcomed Xi's visit. After the welcoming ceremony, both men discussed a range of issues related to peacekeeping, nuclear security, health, environment, cybersecurity, law enforcement and counterterrorism. Xi said that China would develop a "national carbon emissions trading market" in 2017, as a part of climate change statement.[20][21][22] Later they held a news conference at Rose Garden. Obama and Xi reached a "common understanding" that neither the United States nor China should engage in state-sponsored cyberintrusions, and they would together seek the rules for appropriate conduct in cyberspace.[23]
In the evening, Obama held a state dinner for Xi Jinping. It was Obama's second state dinner for a Chinese President. The White House invitedAnita Lo, an Asian-American chef, to serve as a guest chef and to design the menu with Chinese elements. This state dinner's guests includedMark Zuckerberg,Tim Cook andLarry Ellison, as well as former Secretary of StateMadeleine Albright. Obama said “Just as you say in China that a sea accepts a hundred rivers, our countries together are stronger when we accept the diversity of the views and the contributions and uphold the rights of all our people.” Xi responded by calling for a new chapter in relations between the two nations.[24][25]
On September 26, Xi Jinping flew toNew York City and attended the UN Sustainable Development Summit at theHeadquarters of the United Nations. In his speech, he said "the world would seek an equitable, open, comprehensive and innovation-driven development path in an effort to achieve common development of all countries after 2015". He announced the establishment of aSouth–South cooperation assistance fund where China would contribute US$2 billion to encourage developing countries to undertake the post-2015 development agenda. In addition, Xi floated major initiatives such as theBRICS Development Bank, theAsian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and theSilk Road Fund.[26][27]
On September 27, Xi Jinping and United Nations Secretary GeneralBan Ki-moon co-hosted the "2015 Global Women's Summit". In his speech, Xi said, "As the Chinese people pursue a happy life, all Chinese women have the opportunity to excel in life and make their dreams come true".[28] He also announced China would contribute US$10 million to theUN Women initiative.[29] However, former Secretary of StateHillary Clinton criticized his attendance, pointing to the state of women's rights in China.[28]
Peng Liyuan attended UNESCO's Special Envoy for the Advancement of Girls' and Women's Education where she said her dream was for "all children especially girls can have access to good education."[30]
Xi also attended the Leaders Working Lunch on Climate Change of the UN. He said China would control greenhouse gas emissions and put "China's South–South Cooperation Fund on Climate Change" into operation.[31]
Xi gave a speech at the General Debate of the 70th Session of theUnited Nations General Assembly. He mentioned thecommemoration of the 70th anniversary of Victory over Japan Day of the Second World War in China. Xi also said all economies should be built on an eco-environment, and green, low-carbon circular sustainable development platform. He also pledged US$100 million, over a period of five years, to theAfrican Union.[32][33][34]
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