China will send Vice President Han Zheng to President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday, the Foreign Ministry announced Friday, ending weeks of speculation about Beijing’s representation at the event, Bloomberg reports.
The move comes as China seeks to establish a “stable, healthy and sustainable relationship” with the incoming US administration.
An unnamed ministry spokesperson stated that China is ready to work with the new US government to “find the right way for the two countries to get along with each other.” The decision follows reports that Trump had extended an invitation to Chinese President Xi Jinping, a move considered highly unconventional given the historical norms of US presidential inaugurations.
Typically, US inaugurations are attended by ambassadors, lawmakers, and the general public. According to State Department records, no foreign head of state has attended an inauguration in at least a century
However, Trump’s second inauguration is already showing signs of deviating from tradition. Some senior officials from other countries, including Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, have also announced their plans to attend. In addition, prominent tech leaders like Mark Zuckerberg of Meta and Shou Chew, CEO of TikTok, will be present at the ceremony.
The selection of Vice President Han is likely intended as a sign of goodwill toward the incoming Trump administration. Relations between Washington and Beijing have become increasingly strained over recent years due to disagreements on various issues, including trade and the South China Sea. Trump’s campaign rhetoric included threats of imposing tariffs as high as 60% on Chinese goods, raising concerns of a potentially devastating impact on bilateral trade.
For context, China sent its then-ambassador to the US, Cui Tiankai, to President Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021.
China will also be closely monitoring Taiwan’s delegation to the event. Taiwan, which Beijing considers a part of its territory, will send a bipartisan group of eight lawmakers, led by Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu. Traditionally, Taiwan’s delegations for such occasions consist of legislators or mayors rather than central government officials due to the island’s sensitive status. Notably, in 2021, Taiwan’s then-representative to the US and the current vice president, Hsiao Bi-khim, was invited to Biden’s inauguration, marking the first time in decades that a Taiwanese diplomat received an official invite to such an event.
