The Straits Times is reporting that Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to arrive in the United States for a state visit, and that U.S. President Donald Trump will personally receive him at Joint Base Andrews just outside Washington. It said the reception is unprecedented, noting that Trump typically waits at the White House for visiting heads of state and greeted Britain's King Charles on the South Lawn during the latter's state visit in April.
The newspaper said the personal welcome amounts to a significant status upgrade for Xi and is part of the "great men" diplomacy Trump is eager to display. It said Xi and his wife will also be escorted to the National Archives to view original U.S. founding documents, a stop no other Chinese president has made. The Straits Times said the visit is only the sixth state visit by a Chinese leader to the United States since the two sides established diplomatic ties 47 years ago.
The Straits Times said the summit is expected to feature no public address or press conference, and that both sides appear to be managing expectations about concrete outcomes. It said open questions include whether a trade truce set to expire on Nov 10 will be extended, whether cooperation on artificial intelligence safety will go beyond a hotline agreed by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Vice-Premier He Lifeng, and whether the U.S. will delay the sale of a US$14 billion arms package to Taiwan.
The newspaper's U.S. bureau chief, Bhagyashree Garekar, said the meeting serves to consolidate a holding pattern in the bilateral relationship, and that both presidents believe they hold the stronger hand while facing political vulnerability at home. The Straits Times said its China correspondent in Washington, Michelle Ng, found less outright hostility toward China among ordinary Americans, particularly younger ones, though it said protest activity is expected to increase once Xi arrives.
Separately, The Straits Times is reporting that an Indonesian man is being questioned in Singapore over the alleged use of fake $10,000 notes at the Resorts World Sentosa casino. It said he allegedly used a total of 34 counterfeit notes over three visits.
The newspaper also reported that the haze has returned to the region a decade after Indonesia's worst fires, saying cheap burning and patchy enforcement remain unresolved. It said the Xiangshan Forum in China highlighted Beijing's strength as a global convener but also the challenges of conflict resolution, and that Nepal faces a difficult rebuild after massive floods, with towns needing to be rebuilt in safer places. It also reported that an unending conflict and shrinking aid have left Myanmar's refugees and displaced people in increasingly dire circumstances, and examined what Canada's associate membership in the European Union would mean.