China's Xi builds diplomatic clout with multiple state visits ahead of Trump summit

Chinese President Xi Jinping and First Lady Peng Liyuan arrive in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on August 30, 2026, for an official state visit and to attend the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit on September 1.Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty ImagesChinese President Xi Jinping is set to make rare state visits to Egypt and, likely India, before his expected trip to the U.S. in late September.Xi has "sharply curtailed foreign travel in recent years, so his busy upcoming travel schedule is a significant gauge of his priorities," Gabriel Wildau, managing director at Teneo, told CNBC in an email.The Chinese leader this year has so far only ventured abroad once: a state visit in June to North Korea for the first time in seven years. Meanwhile. the world has come to China, with more than 20 leaders — including U.S. President Donald Trump — visiting Beijing in the first half of the year, pointed out U.S.-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies.The global stakes have only risen, with the Iran war, U.S.-China trade tensions and growing security risks from artificial intelligence. For Beijing, that's building the case for an evolution in its global role."It's ti...