![AbeArrivalWH](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/AbeArrivalWH.jpg)
State and official visits to the United States are
formal visits by the head of state (state visit) or chief of government (official visit) from one country to the United States, during which the
president of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
acts as official host of the visitor. State visits are considered to be the highest expression of friendly bilateral relations between the United States and a foreign state and are, in general, characterized by an emphasis on official public ceremonies.
The first visit of a foreign state to the United States was the state visit of the then-independent
Kingdom of Hawaii in 1874; this was followed by the state visit of Brazil in 1876. Since then, numerous heads of state and government have been formally received by the
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
in
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
. In addition to, and more frequently than, state and official visits, the United States also receives foreign dignitaries on official working visits, which are primarily functional trips that occur with less or no ceremony.
Background
Terminology
State visits are visits to the United States led by a foreign
head of state
A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
acting in his or her
sovereign capacity. They are, therefore, described as a "visit of
ame of state. State visits can only occur on the invitation of the president of the United States, acting in his capacity as head of the United States. Official visits, in contrast, are usually visits by the
chief of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a gr ...
of a foreign state. Like state visits, they can only occur on the invitation of the president of the United States, though are offered in the president's capacity as chief of the
federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fe ...
. The visit of a
crown prince
A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wi ...
may also be classified as an official visit. Both state and official visits generally consist of a four-day stay in Washington by the visitor, during which a range of welcoming ceremonies are performed. They are often followed by a tour.
State visits to the United States are always reciprocated, at a later time, with a state visit by the United States. In addition, U.S. diplomatic policy is to host no more than one state visit from any single nation in a four-year period. Because of these rules, some visits of foreign states with
executive president
An executive president is the head of state who exercises authority over the governance of that state, and can be found in presidential, semi-presidential, and parliamentary systems.
They contrast with figurehead presidents, common in most parlia ...
s may be classified as official visits, instead of state visits.
There are, in addition, working visits and official working visits, which are of a largely functional nature and done to conduct business, such as negotiations, consultations, or treaty signings.
Private visits are visits of a head of state or chief of government to the United States for personal reasons, such as a holiday or for medical treatment.
History and purpose
![Kalakaua Grant state visit 1874](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/Kalakaua_Grant_state_visit_1874.jpg)
Due, perhaps, to the geographic isolation of the United States, the first visit by a foreign
head of state
A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
did not occur until nearly one hundred years after independence, when King
Kalākaua
Kalākaua (David Laʻamea Kamananakapu Mahinulani Naloiaehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua; November 16, 1836 – January 20, 1891), sometimes called The Merrie Monarch, was the last king and penultimate monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, ...
of the
Kingdom of Hawaii came to the U.S. during December 1874.
This was followed, two years later, with a visit by Emperor
Dom Pedro II
Dom PedroII (2 December 1825 – 5 December 1891), nicknamed "the Magnanimous" ( pt, O Magnânimo), was the second and last monarch of the Empire of Brazil, reigning for over 58 years. He was born in Rio de Janeiro, the seventh child of Em ...
of the
Empire of Brazil
The Empire of Brazil was a 19th-century state that broadly comprised the territories which form modern Brazil and (until 1828) Uruguay. Its government was a representative parliamentary constitutional monarchy under the rule of Emperors Dom ...
.
State and official visits have sometimes been controversial. A discussed 1995 state visit by China, for example, never materialized after the administration of Bill Clinton decided it was unwilling to face the criticism from Congress and others that such an invitation would prompt. President Clinton extended a private invitation to
Jiang Zemin
Jiang Zemin (17 August 1926 – 30 November 2022) was a Chinese politician who served as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1989 to 2002, as chairman of the Central Military Commission from 1989 to 2004, and as pr ...
for a less formal meeting at the White House, but the Chinese government (represented by Foreign Minister
Qian Qichen
Qian Qichen (; 5 January 1928 – 9 May 2017) was a Chinese diplomat and politician. He served as Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Politburo member from 1992 to 2002, China's Foreign Minister from April 1988 to March 1998, and as Vice Premier f ...
) declined, "based not on any substantive disagreement, but on China's insistence that Mr. Jiang deserved a formal state." Jiang did meet with Clinton at the
United Nations General Assembly
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...
in New York in October 1995, but there was no Chinese state visit to the U.S. until 1997.
Declining or canceling an invitation to a state or official visit can be interpreted as a rebuke of the United States on the international stage. In 1986, for instance,
Hassan II of Morocco canceled a visit to Washington, D.C. Though the Moroccan government cited the king's personal fatigue as the reason, the cancellation was widely perceived as an expression of irritation with the U.S.' criticism over Moroccan relations with
Gaddafi's Libya. In 2013, Brazilian President
Dilma Rousseff
Dilma Vana Rousseff (; born 14 December 1947) is a Brazilian economist and politician who served as the 36th president of Brazil, holding the position from 2011 until her impeachment and removal from office on 31 August 2016. She is the first ...
canceled a planned state visit to the United States after revelations that the U.S.
National Security Agency
The National Security Agency (NSA) is a national-level intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collect ...
had
spied on her communications and the communications of other
Brazilian government
The politics of Brazil take place in a framework of a federal presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President is both head of state and head of government, and of a multi-party system. The political and administrative o ...
officials.
Ceremonial activities
A wide variety of ceremonial activities occur during visits to the United States. The specific order of occurrence will vary based on the visitor's itinerary and is determined in advance during pre-visit negotiations between protocol officials of the United States and the visiting state. However, the activities allowed and the form they take proceed generally according to a schedule that accounts for the visitor's rank and the nature of the visit.
Flight line ceremony
A visiting head of state or chief of government will typically arrive, via aircraft, at
Joint Base Andrews. When the visitor's aircraft has completed taxiing, a ground crew will move air stairs into position at the aircraft's door and unroll a red carpet. A military cordon, consisting of an approximately equal number of personnel from the
3rd United States Infantry Regiment, the
U.S. Navy Ceremonial Guard, the
U.S. Coast Guard Ceremonial Honor Guard
The United States Coast Guard Ceremonial Honor Guard is a unit of the United States Coast Guard responsible for the performance of public duties. Stationed at the Command, Control, Communication, Computer, Cyber and Intelligence Service Center (C5 ...
, and the
U.S. Air Force Honor Guard will form, flanking either side of the red carpet. For visiting heads-of-state the cordon will consist of 21-personnel, for chiefs of government, nineteen. In front of the cordon, closer to the aircraft stairs, a welcoming committee will form in a line. Two officers from the Joint Colour Guard will hold sticks attached to the flag of the United States and the flag of the visiting country. The
welcoming committee consists of the
United States Chief of Protocol, the United States ambassador to the visiting state, the visiting state's ambassador to the United States, the commanding general of Joint Base Andrews, and two or three prominent personages designated by the Chief of Protocol.
![CameronAndrewsFLA](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/CameronAndrewsFLA.jpg)
As the visitor walks down the air stairs, the
U.S. Air Force Band
The United States Air Force Band is a United States military bands, U.S. military band consisting of 184 active-duty members of the United States Air Force.
It is the Air Force's premier musical organization and is based at Joint Base Anacostia- ...
performs "Arrival Fanfare Number One". At the bottom of the stairs, he or she will be greeted by an American schoolchild with a bouquet of flowers before being introduced to the welcoming committee by the chief of protocol. The national anthems of the visiting state and the United States will be performed prior to the visitor's departure, by car, to the
President's Guest House (or other accommodations).
Arrival ceremony
![Defense](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/Defense.gov_News_Photo_000808-D-9880W-028.jpg)
For state and official visits, a formal arrival ceremony will typically be hosted by the president on the
South Lawn
The South Lawn at the White House in Washington, D.C., is directly south of the house and is bordered on the east by East Executive Drive and the Treasury Building, on the west by West Executive Drive and the Old Executive Office Building, and ...
of the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...
the morning after the dignitary arrives in the United States. The arrival ceremony was only added to the program of the state visit in the 1940s. The
Chief Usher of the White House
The White House chief usher is the head of household staff and operations at the White House, the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States of America. The position is currently held by Robert B. Downing, wh ...
is principally responsible for arrangements of the arrival ceremony.
The arrival ceremony is conducted by a civilian welcoming committee, as well as a large number of military personnel drawn from the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, the U.S. Navy Ceremonial Guard, the U.S. Air Force Honor Guard, the
U.S. Coast Guard Ceremonial Honor Guard
The United States Coast Guard Ceremonial Honor Guard is a unit of the United States Coast Guard responsible for the performance of public duties. Stationed at the Command, Control, Communication, Computer, Cyber and Intelligence Service Center (C5 ...
, the
White House sentries
The White House Military Office (WHMO) is a department within the White House Office that provides military support for White House functions, including food service, presidential transportation, medical support, emergency medical services and hos ...
, Alpha Company of the garrison of
Marine Barracks Washington, and selected other personnel.
For official working visits, a different arrival ceremony will be held at the parade ground of the Pentagon, instead of the South Lawn of the White House. The presiding official of this form of arrival ceremony is the
United States Secretary of Defense
The United States secretary of defense (SecDef) is the head of the United States Department of Defense, the executive department of the U.S. Armed Forces, and is a high ranking member of the federal cabinet. DoDD 5100.1: Enclosure 2: a The ...
instead of the president.
During the White House arrival ceremony
Presidential Salute Battery fires cannon volleys from a firing position in
President's Park during the performance of the visiting state's
national anthem
A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...
.
Order of events for a White House arrival
Blair House
During state and official visits, the visitor will be invited to use the
President's Guest House (also known as Blair House), a 119-room home across the street from the White House. During the residence of a foreign dignitary, the dignitary's official standard is displayed on the building's flagpole. In cases of dignitaries who do not have official standards, the respective nation's flag is displayed instead.
On occasions where two or more foreign visitors of equal rank are visiting Washington, neither are invited to stay at the President's Guest House. The policy is in place to avoid the perception of favoritism.
![PGHGermany123](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/PGHGermany123.png)
Some visiting dignitaries with whom the sitting president has a personal relationship have been invited to stay in the guest quarters at the White House, a suite of rooms in the southeast corner of the second floor of that building that includes the
Lincoln Bedroom
The Lincoln Bedroom is a bedroom which is part of a guest suite located in the southeast corner of the second floor of the White House in Washington, D.C. The Lincoln Sitting Room makes up the other part of the suite. The room is named for Presi ...
and
Queens' Bedroom
The Queens' Bedroom is on the second floor of the White House, part of a guest suite of rooms that includes the Queens' Sitting Room..
Furnishings
The room has been furnished in 1868 Federal style since the Truman reconstruction. The bed ...
, plus their adjoining sitting rooms, dressing rooms and bathrooms. These are separated from the president's apartments by a staircase landing. During the presidency of Bill Clinton,
Queen Sonja
Sonja (born Sonja Haraldsen on 4 July 1937) is Queen of Norway since 17 January 1991 as the wife of King Harald V.
Sonja and the then Crown Prince Harald had dated for nine years prior to their marriage in 1968. They had kept their relation ...
and
John Major both stayed in the White House guest quarters, instead of the President's Guest House.
Department of State luncheon
![FlightLineArrivalDiagram](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/FlightLineArrivalDiagram.jpg)
Official and official working visits, as well as some state visits led by an
executive president
An executive president is the head of state who exercises authority over the governance of that state, and can be found in presidential, semi-presidential, and parliamentary systems.
They contrast with figurehead presidents, common in most parlia ...
, generally include a luncheon at
Foggy Bottom
Foggy Bottom is one of the oldest late 18th- and 19th-century neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., located west of the White House and downtown Washington, in the Northwest quadrant. It is bounded roughly by 17th Street NW to the east, Rock C ...
, which will be jointly hosted by the
Vice President of the United States
The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice ...
and the
United States Secretary of State
The United States secretary of state is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The office holder is one of the highest ranking members of the president's Ca ...
; the president of the United States does not attend. Luncheons typically follow the White House or Pentagon arrival ceremony and are held in the
Benjamin Franklin State Dining Room. They are served in three courses.
State dinner
![DELEGHON221](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/DELEGHON221.jpg)
A dinner at the White House is held in the evening after the White House arrival ceremony in the case of state and official visits. Dinners are appropriately referred to as state dinners whether or not they occur during a state or official visit; the name, in this case, refers to the rank of the host of the dinner (the president of the United States), not the visitor.
The dress code for state dinners is determined in advance by the
White House Social Secretary
The White House social secretary is responsible for the planning, coordination and execution of official social events at the White House, the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States.
Function
The social s ...
in consultation with the
Office of the First Lady of the United States
The Office of the First Lady (OFL) is the staff accountable to the first lady of the United States. The office and its responsibilities, while not constitutionally mandated, have grown as the role of the first lady has grown and formalized throu ...
.
Black tie or
mess dress
Mess dress uniform is the most formal (or semi-formal, depending on the country) type of uniforms used by military personnel, police personnel, and other uniformed services members. It frequently consists of a mess jacket, trousers, white d ...
is usually prescribed for state dinners during official visits, while state dinners during state visits may be either black tie or mess dress, or
white tie
White tie, also called full evening dress or a dress suit, is the most formal in traditional evening western dress codes. For men, it consists of a black tail coat (alternatively referred to as a dress coat, usually by tailors) worn over a wh ...
with decorations or mess dress. The president of the United States has not customarily worn decorations, with some exceptions as in cases where he has been invested into an order of the visiting state. Where applicable, visitors may wear
national costume
A folk costume (also regional costume, national costume, traditional garment, or traditional regalia) expresses an identity through costume, which is usually associated with a geographic area or a period of time in history. It can also indicat ...
instead of
evening dress.
Visitors from socialist states, including
Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and chairman of the country's Council of Ministers from 1958 to 1964. During his rule, Khrushchev s ...
and
Hu Jintao, have, in the past, refused to wear evening dress.
Dinners are typically held in the
State Dining Room. Those for which guests exceeding the capacity of the room have been invited may overflow into the adjoining
Red Room.
On some occasions, weather permitting, the dinner is held outdoors, such as during the official visit of Chancellor
Ludwig Erhard in 1964 or the state visit of the United Kingdom in 1976.
Guests at White House state dinners are seated at ten-person round tables. The practice of using a large number of round tables, instead of one or a few long banquet tables, was initiated by
Jacqueline Kennedy.
Order of events for a state dinner
Return dinner
![RooseveltPrussia](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/RooseveltPrussia.jpg)
The evening following the state or official dinner, it is customary for the visitor to host a return dinner at the chancery of his or her embassy in Washington. In general, during state visits the president and first lady will attend the return dinner. During official visits, only the
Vice-President of the United States
The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice pr ...
and
their spouse will attend, though this custom is not one strictly observed and the president has attended return dinners during official visits, in addition to state visits.
Address to the Congress
The day following the state dinner, the visiting head of state or chief of government will often be invited to address a joint meeting of the
Senate of the United States
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
and the
House of Representatives of the United States
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
. As the parliamentary procedure for initiating a joint session is complex, a joint meeting is usually held instead. (No foreign head of state or chief of government has ever addressed a joint session of Congress, although in 1934 French ambassador
André Lefebvre de La Boulaye addressed a joint session to memorialize the centennial of the death of the
Marquis de Lafayette
Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette (6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (, ), was a French aristocrat, freemason and military officer who fought in the American Revolutio ...
.)
Streetlining
Beginning the day before the arrival of the visitor, and continuing through their stay, lamp posts on
Pennsylvania Avenue
Pennsylvania Avenue is a diagonal street in Washington, D.C., and Prince George's County, Maryland, that connects the White House and the United States Capitol and then crosses the city to Maryland. In Maryland it is also Maryland Route 4 (MD 4 ...
will be outfitted with the visiting state's flag, as well as that of the United States and the District of Columbia. The flag of the visiting state will also be displayed over the East Executive Avenue entrance to the Eisenhower Executive Building.
Non-ceremonial activities
Visits to historic sites
On some state visits, foreign leaders have visited
Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...
, the Virginia home of
George Washington
George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...
. In 1944, General
Charles de Gaulle, then the leader of the
Free French Forces
__NOTOC__
The French Liberation Army (french: Armée française de la Libération or AFL) was the reunified French Army that arose from the merging of the Armée d'Afrique with the prior Free French Forces (french: Forces françaises libres, l ...
, traveled to the United States. The trip was treated by President
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
as "something less than a state visit" but still featured "a schedule that had all the trappings of a visiting head of state"—including visits by de Gaulle to Mount Vernon and the
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
A Tomb of the Unknown Soldier or Tomb of the Unknown Warrior is a monument dedicated to the services of an unknown soldier and to the common memories of all soldiers killed in war. Such tombs can be found in many nations and are usually high-prof ...
at
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...
. A trip to Mount Vernon was also undertaken by Pakistan leader
Ayub Khan in July 1961, when President John F. Kennedy hosted Khan at a state dinner at Mount Vernon.
[Bruce O. Riedel, ''Avoiding Armageddon: America, India, and Pakistan to the Brink and Back'' (]Brookings Institution Press
The Brookings Institution, often stylized as simply Brookings, is an American research group founded in 1916. Located on Think Tank Row in Washington, D.C., the organization conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in e ...
, 2014), p. 58. This was the first and apparently the only time in U.S. history that a state dinner has taken place outside the White House.
Many foreign heads of state over the years have also visited
Monticello
Monticello ( ) was the primary plantation of Founding Father Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, who began designing Monticello after inheriting land from his father at age 26. Located just outside Charlottesville, V ...
(the home of
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...
) over the years, sometimes accompanied by the U.S. president and sometimes not. The first trip to Monticello by a visiting foreign head of state was made by
Indonesian Prime Minister Sutan Sjahrir in September 1947.
In July 1985, Chinese President
Li Xiannian
Li Xiannian (pronounced ; 23 June 1909 – 21 June 1992) was a Chinese Communist military and political leader, President of the People's Republic of China (''de jure'' head of state) from 1983 to 1988 under Paramount Leader Deng Xiaoping and t ...
traveled to the United States, the first such visit by a PRC head of state. U.S. President Ronald Reagan bid a welcome to President Li at a ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House. In 1997,
Chinese Communist Party
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...
general secretary
Jiang Zemin
Jiang Zemin (17 August 1926 – 30 November 2022) was a Chinese politician who served as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1989 to 2002, as chairman of the Central Military Commission from 1989 to 2004, and as pr ...
began his state visit to the United States (the second by a
paramount leader of China, after
Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After CCP ...
) by visiting
colonial Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg is a living-history museum and private foundation presenting a part of the historic district in the city of Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation has 7300 employees at this location a ...
and then
Independence Hall
Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were debated and adopted by America's Founding Fathers. The structure forms the centerpi ...
in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
; in 1998, President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
reciprocated when he began his state visit to China with a trip to the
Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor
The Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor () is the mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of the Qin dynasty. It is located in Lintong District, Xi'an, Shaanxi province of China. It was constructed over 38 years, from 246 to 208 BCE, and is ...
, famed as the site of the
Terracotta Army
The Terracotta Army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE with the purpose of protecting the emperor ...
.
River barge cruises
In 1992,
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin ( rus, Борис Николаевич Ельцин, p=bɐˈrʲis nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈjelʲtsɨn, a=Ru-Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin.ogg; 1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician wh ...
described his cruise on the
Ceremonial Barge Chesapeake with
George H. W. Bush:
Tour
After four days in Washington, D.C., a visiting dignitary on a state or official visit may sometimes undertake a tour that lasts as long as ten days.
In popular culture
* In the seventh episode of
first season of the television series "
The West Wing
''The West Wing'' is an American serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White Hous ...
", President
Josiah Bartlet
Josiah Edward "Jed" Bartlet is a fictional character from the American television serial drama ''The West Wing'' created by Aaron Sorkin and portrayed by actor Martin Sheen. The role earned Sheen a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Telev ...
hosts a state dinner for the President of
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
* In the third episode of the
third season of the web television series ''
House of Cards
A house of cards (also known as a card tower or card castle) is a structure created by stacking playing cards on top of each other, often in the shape of a pyramid. "House of cards" is also an expression that dates back to 1645 meaning a structu ...
'', President
Frank Underwood hosts a state visit for the
President of Russia
The president of the Russian Federation ( rus, Президент Российской Федерации, Prezident Rossiyskoy Federatsii) is the head of state of the Russian Federation. The president leads the executive branch of the federal ...
.
* In the second episode of the fourth season of the
HBO television series ''
Veep
''Veep'' is an American political satire comedy television series that aired on HBO from April 22, 2012, to May 12, 2019. The series was created by Armando Iannucci as an adaptation of his sitcom ''The Thick of It''. The protagonist of ''Veep' ...
'', the character of
Selina Meyer
Selina Catherine Meyer ( ; née Eaton) is a fictional character portrayed by Julia Louis-Dreyfus on the HBO television comedy series ''Veep''. Louis-Dreyfus has been critically acclaimed for the role, earning a record-breaking six consecutive ...
hosts an official visit for the
prime minister of Israel
The prime minister of Israel ( he, רֹאשׁ הַמֶּמְשָׁלָה, Rosh HaMemshala, Head of the Government, Hebrew acronym: he2, רה״מ; ar, رئيس الحكومة, ''Ra'īs al-Ḥukūma'') is the head of government and chief exec ...
.
See also
*
Commander-in-Chief's Guard (3rd Infantry Regiment)
The Commander-in-Chief's Guard – also known as the CINC Guard but officially Company A, 4th Battalion, 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment – is a infantry unit of the United States Army that also has public duties and riot control missions within the ...
*
List of heads of state and government visits to the United States
*
List of United States military premier ensembles
*
State funerals in the United States
*
United States Army Herald Trumpets
References
{{Reflist, 3
External links
Visits by Foreign Leaders– catalog by the
Office of the Historian
The Office of the Historian is an office of the United States Department of State within the Foreign Service Institute. It is legally responsible for the preparation and publication of the official historical documentary record of U.S. foreign p ...
,
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...
; lists visits by year and by country, including names of the visiting leader and a brief description of the visit
Ceremonies in the United States
Diplomacy
State ritual and ceremonies
Diplomatic protocol