International security

The Significance of Xi Jinping’s US Visit

China’s President Xi Jinping is in the U.S. on his first state visit, which within China is being widely seen as a historical event comparable to that undertaken by then vice premier Deng Xiaoping in 1979. Xi’s visit is being given an unusually high profile, which seems to signify a new chapter in the bilateral relationship. It is worth exploring the possible justification for this.

It is widely acknowledged that Deng’s visit to the U.S. in 1979 showed that China was ready to be embedded into the institutional network initiated and dominated by the U.S.