Following Xi and Trump's last meeting in May, the US had announced that it was pausing a $14bn (£10.4bn) arms sale to Taiwan, though it said this was to ensure it had enough weapons for the Iran war.

The $14bn package has been waiting for Trump's approval for months. It includes air defence missiles, such as Lockheed Martin's PAC-3, and surface-to-air missile systems, according to a Reuters report in March.

According to one report by Kyodo News citing multiple sources, China had earlier this month reportedly told the US that it would cancel the summit if the US approved any new arms sales to Taiwan.

If and when Taiwan might receive the package is the "million dollar question", Lyle Morris, a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute told the BBC's Newsday programme.

He said he would expect the package to be approved "some time in the future", noting "if Trump does not approve the package, I think that sends a very negative signal to the region."

Morris also said that tonight's state dinner would be received well by Xi as part of a wider "courtship" between the two countries.

Osmond Chia
Business reporter

China and the US should have a healthy competition in AI, "not a wrestle in which one either wins or loses," President Xi Jinping said earlier on Thursday in the White House.

Despite decades of American dominance in technology, many experts observe that China has gained substantial ground in recent years.

Beijing has made AI a cornerstone for the nation's technological goals for more than a decade.

While many US companies have focused on making the most advanced AI models, China's industry has prioritised ways to deploy it across its economy.

Its top companies have released what is known as open weight models, which can be installed and modified to a user's needs.

The strategy is in stark contrast to the approach taken by US firms sell closely-guarded proprietary models.

China's open models have helped drive adoption and innovation across the industry.

Models such as Moonshot AI's Kimi K3 have become popular in China and overseas because they perform close to the frontier models while remaining freely downloadable and free to tweak.

Image source, Eye Ubiquitous/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

During talks between Xi and Trump, the Chinese president said their two countries should work more closely together to avoid the "Thucydides Trap".

But what is it and why has Xi used the term?

Thucydides was a historian in 5th Century BC Greece. The Thucydides Trap describes the dangerous dynamic that occurs when a rising power threatens to displace an established one, which makes violent conflict highly probable.

In the ancient Greek world, it was Athens that threatened Sparta. Today, it can be used to view how China's rise has the potential to challenge the US.

It is not the first time the Chinese leader has used the term when meeting Trump.

While both presidents spoke warmly about one another, Xi's repeated use of the term underscores how concerns about a potential US-China conflict continue to cast a shadow over the relationship between the world's two most powerful countries.

Early Thursday morning, Trump posted a photograph of him and Xi at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, shortly after the latter disembarked.

If you look more closely, there are some strange details to this photo - here's how we know it's been altered.

Xi didn't get everything he wantedpublished at 05:41 BST

05:41 BST

Laura Bicker
China correspondent

Xi Jinping’s summits with Donald Trump have one clear aim.

China believes the US is trying to contain its rise as a superpower, and it wants Washington to stay out of its way - particularly when it comes to trade, technology and Taiwan.

On this visit, the Chinese leader didn’t get everything he wanted.

The trade truce that has prevented a further escalation of tariffs was extended by only a few months. Beijing had hoped the extension would go for at least a year as Xi looks to ride out the final years of Trump’s presidency.

This means key disputes on tariffs, China’s dominance on rare earth supplies and access to advanced US chips are being kicked forward into yet another round of negotiations.

This suggests the US wants China to do more to fulfil its side of the bargain before offering longer-term concessions.

The uncomfortable truth for Xi is that his domestic economy is in trouble. While the country sells a record number of goods around the world, consumers at home are holding back. Youth unemployment remains stubbornly high and property prices have slumped in a country where 80% of people own their own homes.

Trade is helping to prop up growth, making access to overseas markets more important than ever. Xi needs to protect those exports from debilitating tariffs.

We're reaching the end of President Xi's second day in DC. If you're just joining us now, here are some key moments from Thursday's state dinner:

• President Trump hailed the US' ties with China and presented his counterpart with an ornate eagle statue
• In his speech, Chinese leader Xi that the two have shared "sincere and in-depth exchanges" and said both countries' goals can be "mutually reinforcing"
• Top US tech leaders attended the banquet, including OpenAI's Sam Altman, Nvidia chief Jensen Huang and Tesla boss Elon Musk
• Reporters from CNN, MS Now and Politico said they were denied entry to cover the state dinner despite a judge ruling their access to the grounds must be restored
• Beyond the optics and friendly exchanges, it remains unclear what tangible deals will emerge from the talks

Image source, Reuters

It's not a red carpet event at the White House without a suitably glamorous choice of outfit.

Melania Trump, no stranger to bold fashion choices, wore a white cotton poplin Saint Laurent shirt with an oversized bow on the neck. She paired it with a black brocade trousers and a silk cummerband from Dolce & Gabbana.

Peng Liyuan wore a deep red, floor-length dress with trumpet sleeves and a mandarin collar, which she accessorised with a black handbag. It's not clear which designer was behind Peng's outfit, but she is typically known to prefer Chinese designers, with Ma Ke behind a number of her looks.

Image source, Getty Images

President Donald Trump said earlier that he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have made "tremendous strides" on the issues facing the sides.

Beijing and Washington have so far agreed to extend their trade truce by two months while they work on a bigger deal.

Yet as it stands, companies face much the same uncertainty about the conditions their businesses will operate under in the months to come, investment strategist Charu Chanana from Saxo Markets said.

Businesses are looking for practical signals like "published tariff changes", rare earth shipments, agricultural purchases and changes to the rules around US chip exports.

"Those would matter more than the summit’s cordial optics," Chanana said.

"My read: this was a stability summit, not a breakthrough summit."

Image source, Bloomberg via Getty Images

President Trump presented Chinese leader Xi with a sculpture of a bald eagle.

The bird is the US' national symbol, embodying the "free and soaring spirit of America," Trump said during the state dinner.

The statue is part of a valuable - but sometimes tricky - aspect of international diplomacy: gift-giving, the BBC writes.

Read more here: Why Trump gave Xi an ornate bald eagle statue at the state dinner

Laura Bicker
China correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

For now, one of the summits biggest victories for Beijing may have been the optics.

The lavish welcome, a personal greeting at the airport and a state banquet featuring sesame crusted sea bass and braised baby bok choy have been welcomed by those watching from China. It will have helped cement Xi’s image at home as Trump’s equal.

Memes contrasting the two leaders have spread widely on Chinese social media. One popular image shows Trump grimacing as bomber jets fly overhead, while Xi remained impassive.

Xi has found a way to manage one of the world’s most unpredictable leaders. But while Trump talks of a "truly great friendship", China’s leader is focussed on something bigger: securing China’s place alongside the US as a superpower.

The pandas, the pageantry and the warm words may help smooth this relationship. But beneath the spectacle, the competition between the world’s two most powerful countries remains as fierce as ever.

Image source, Getty Images

Earlier in the day, Xi said China hopes the US will adhere to the "correct position" of "opposing Taiwan independence", Beijing's state news agency Xinhua reported.

The Chinese leader urged Washington to "handle the Taiwan question with prudence to lay a solid foundation for bilateral strategic cooperation and the development of China-US ties", Xinhua reported, adding that "China's position on safeguarding its national unity and territorial integrity is crystal clear".

Beijing claims self-governed Taiwan as part of its territory - though the island sees itself as distinct. Xi's government, in particular, has doubled down on its threats and sought ways to stamp out what it sees as separatism.

The US does not have formal relations with Taiwan, though it is bound by law to provide it with a means of self-defence. But it has frequently had to square this alliance with maintaining a diplomatic relationship with China.

Osmond Chia
Business reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Earlier on Thursday, Chinese President Xi stated that as the world's leading technology nations, the US and China share the responsibility for AI development.

He called on both sides to foster AI for the common good and ensure it stays under human supervision - echoing principles he has previously laid out for China’s domestic tech sector.

Views towards AI in China are "a lot more friendlier" than in the US, where sentiment is "more divergent", said analyst Lian Jye Su from tech research firm Omdia.

Beijing has made the technology a key pillar of its economic agenda and has advocated for the open sharing of AI models, driving adoption across the industry. The country also has a booming robotics sector.

Trump said earlier that AI will feature in his talks with Xi.

His government faces calls from experts and top tech figures stronger safeguards due to concerns about AI's risks. But Trump has largely dismissed these as a "hoax", arguing that the US cannot afford to lose its edge to China.

As for Beijing, there is "no chance" that China would agree to pace its AI development while they are behind, said Martin Chorzempa from the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

Reporters from CNN, MS NOW and Politico had earlier said they were denied entry to cover the White House state dinner despite a judge ruling their access to the grounds must be restored.

Trump had barred the three American media outlets from the White House since Saturday, accusing them of "fake news".

Journalists from the three outlets were allowed back on White House grounds Thursday morning after a federal judge said in an overnight ruling that the ban was likely unconstitutional and that the administration must allow them access. But the outlets said in evening that they were barred from covering the state dinner.

CNN reported that a press wrangler had barred their reporter and producer from entering the state dinner, telling them instead to "talk to" White House Communications Director Steven Cheung.

In response to a tweet by MS NOW producer Kyle Griffin on the development, the White House's Rapid Response account said the dinner was a "pre-credentialed event".

"Contrary to what the Fake News wants you to believe, they don’t just get to have free rein into every part of the White House, every event, and every press call," it said.

The BBC's China correspondent Laura Bicker analyses the successes - and failures - of the state visit.

Xi's visit to the US is, unsurprisingly, making headlines on Chinese state media this morning.

The People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, published a photo spread on its front page, of Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan being received at the White House with great fanfare.

Pages two and three included news related to the visit, including Melania Trump hosting Peng at the National Museum of Asian Art and commentaries on US-China ties. It also carried Xi's remarks at yesterday's welcome ceremony in full.

Global Times, an English language outlet under the People's Daily, ran opinion pieces calling for China and the US to be "partners, not rivals". Several of these pieces make mention of AI and how it "should be new avenue for expanding China-US cooperation".

The US and China's visions on AI differ sharply. While Beijing is in favour of closer global collaboration on AI safeguards, the US rejects the idea of international supervision.

Ione Wells
Reporting from Washington DC

Donald Trump’s remarks were laden with flattery. He called President Xi and his wife “outstanding”, spoke of a “long relationship” and invited him to be one of the first guests to step foot in the White House’s new ballroom.

“This is an honour,” he said.

You’d think from such fawning language that this was one of the US’s closest allies.

President Trump said they represented “different systems” but held back from anything resembling a critique.

President Xi praised the Trumps’ “gracious hospitality” but did hint at what he described as sincere and in-depth exchanges.

For all the talk of friendship, a long history of exchanging goods, and a new chapter, it’s very opaque how much progress - or not - has been made on the areas where these two countries are poles apart, particularly on foreign policy.

The next few months will be a real test. Does their trade truce hold beyond January? Does the US push ahead with arms sales to Taiwan? And will Xi return for December's G20 in Florida?

The state dinner is underway, and new images are emerging of guests mingling in the White House East Room.

Pictured are leading US technology executives and public figures gathered as Washington hosts Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

After the world leaders have finished sipping their Schramsberg Blanc de Noir, Trump alluded to "entertainment" to come.

He also promised a ballroom tour to President Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan.

But beyond those festivities and the potential for mingling with major tech and business magnates, there is not much more in store for the night.

However, tomorrow the presidents wil have tea at the White House and pay a visit to the National Archives before Xi's departure.

Warm words from a Chinese leader who wants to keep relations 'stable'published at 01:52 BST

01:52 BST

Laura Bicker
China correspondent

Image source, Reuters

There are two words Xi is fond of using when it comes to China’s relationship with the United States.

Constructive and stable.

He’s used them again at a speech during the lavish state banquet, before the dinners of yellow squash velouté and sesame crusted sea bass.

"Let us join hands and move forward, side by side, together," he added.

These are warm words from the Chinese leader and a sign that he does want to keep this relationship stable.

The uncomfortable truth for Xi is that his domestic economy is in trouble and he needs to protect exports from debilitating tariffs.

He also needs the US market on side and to prevent his country’s rivalry with the US to spiral out of control.

Image source, Getty Images

In addition to Donald Trump, Xi Jinping, and their spouses, here's a look at who else is dining alongside the leaders tonight:

• Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and his wife, Lori Huang
• Apple's Tim Cook
• Tesla's Elon Musk
• AMD CEO Lisa Su and her husband Daniel Lin

When Trump visited Beijing in May, the leaders' table at the state dinner then was filled with government officials on the Chinese side.

Image source, Reuters