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Trump invites a slew of foreign leaders to his inauguration, breaking with tradition
China's President Xi Jinping delivers his speech during a welcoming dinner ahead of celebrations for the 25th anniversary of Macau's handover from Portugal to China, in Macau on Dec. 19, 2024.
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This is the first time that a president-elect is welcoming foreign leaders to his inauguration.
Donald Trump is breaking with tradition to invite Chinese President Xi Jinping and right-wing leaders including Argentine President Javier Milei and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Seats at the inauguration are also being reserved for a whole host of far-right and populist politicians from Europe and Britain. These include Nigel Farage, the leader of the U.K.'s anti-immigration Reform party, and the far-right French presidential candidate Éric Zemmour, who has been convicted multiple times of inciting racist or religious hatred.
As is Tino Chrupalla, a co-leader of Germany's far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), will also attend — this follows Elon Musk's endorsement of the party. Musk recently hosted AfD co-leader Alice Weidel on his social media platform, X, raising further speculation about whether he is seeking to influence European politics.
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In Italy, the newspapers are full speculation about whether Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni will be just a spectator at the inauguration, or if she will get some time to speak with Trump, or at least have a photo op — both options that would raise her burgeoning reputation as a key interlocutor between Trump and Europe.
Meloni was one of few world leaders to visit the president-elect at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida this month. So far Trump has sidelined the European centrist political mainstream — EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has conspicuously not been invited to his inauguration.
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