President Donald Trump plans to host Chinese President Xi Jinping for a two-day summit at his Florida club, Mar-a-Lago, according to Axios.
The summit is tentatively scheduled for early April. According to CNN, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will travel to Beijing this week, in part, to finalize plans for the Mar-a-Lago meeting.
Trump has previously hosted other world leaders at Mar-a-Lago. Last month, he met Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe there for the second time. The visit caused a stir when it was later reported that Trump and Abe coordinated a response to a North Korean ballistic missile test in front of patrons dining at the club.
Trump’s use of his Mar-a-Lago estate during his time in office has been a source of criticism among Democrats and Palm Springs residents. While locals have voiced their concerns over how their city is being affected by the president’s frequent Florida visits (e.g. grounded planes, the reallocation of local police protection) Senate Democrats want a tally of visitors coming to the club to “dispel concerns that the wealthy and the well-connected have unfair access.”
The meeting with Jinping comes at a time where the United States is looking for China to cooperate on relations with North Korea, trade, and currency. The Chinese are concerned about Trump’s threats on trade and, according to Axios, Xi feels that by engaging with Trump China can avoid “punitive measures.”
Source:ijr.com