China’s Xi Jinping to skip UN meeting during trip to US, report says

Chinese leader Xi Jinping is reportedly set to bypass New York and forgo addressing the United Nations General Assembly during his planned September visit to the United States. Instead, Xi is expected to focus on a meeting with President Donald Trump, according to a report by Politico citing four individuals familiar with the matter.

The three-day visit, scheduled for September, will include a meeting with Trump on September 24. This planned encounter follows an invitation extended by Trump during his own trip to Beijing in May, where the leaders aimed to stabilize relations that had been strained by trade, technology, and Taiwan issues.

While the spring summit did not yield major breakthroughs, Xi described the visit as a "historic" milestone in bilateral ties. The decision for Xi to skip the UNGA address, if confirmed, marks a shift from previous expectations that he might engage with world leaders at the UN gathering as part of his U.S. tour.

A spokesperson for China's Foreign Ministry in Beijing stated that details regarding China's participation in the UN General Assembly event would be communicated in due course. The absence of Xi at the UNGA could signal a prioritization of direct bilateral engagement with the U.S. administration over multilateral diplomacy during this particular trip.