Diplomatic disagreements kept Chinese CEOs from Xi Jinping's Washington dinner
At President Xi Jinping's recent state dinner in Washington, several Chinese CEOs who had traveled to Washington ended up missing the dinner, while big names from American companies like Tesla and Apple got a seat at the table.
The reason? Ongoing diplomatic disagreements between the US and China over who should be included, especially when it comes to business leaders.
Reciprocity confusion stalled business invitations
The US originally suggested inviting Chinese business leaders, following what China did for American executives during Trump's visit to Beijing.
But slow responses and mixed messages about "reciprocity" meant nothing was finalized.
Last-minute negotiations didn't work out either, so China decided not to push further and kept things focused on official diplomacy instead of business networking this time around.