According to Ushakov, Moscow will not have a presence at the inauguration because Russia's possible candidate for Russian ambassador to the U.S.—Alexander Darchiev, the head of the North American Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry—has still not received an agrément from Washington.

US President-elect Donald Trump and Leader Xi Jinping had a telephone conversation today. This is reported by Bloomberg with reference to the official Chinese agency Xinhua.

… Rep. Rick Crawford, an Arkansas Republican who was “ raised in an Air Force family” and is a U.S. Army veteran, will take over as House Intelligence Committee chairman. … The U.S. is leveling more sanctions Thursday relating to the raging civil war in Sudan.

Vice President Han Zheng, China’s representative at Donald Trump’s inauguration, is a trusted adviser to President Xi Jinping.

China will send Vice President Han Zheng to attend President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on January 20, 2025.

Han has used the visit to meet with members of the American business community, including Tesla CEO and close Trump associate Elon Musk, according to Chinese state agency Xinhua. Musk is widely thought to be seen by Beijing as more sympathetic to its interests than others in Trump’s orbit.

China will send Vice President Han Zheng to Donald Trump's inauguration. That may be a disappointment for Trump's team, Politico reports. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the vice president would attend Trump's inauguration as “Xi Jinping's special representative.