Arabella Kushner appears during Xi Jinping’s 2026 White House state visit.
Arabella Kushner, the 15-year-old daughter of Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, drew attention during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s September 2026 state visit to Washington after greeting him in Mandarin.
Her brief welcome reflected a connection that goes back years. Arabella has been learning and performing in Mandarin since childhood and previously became known in China after videos of her speaking and singing in the language were shared publicly.
During Xi’s visit, Arabella was seen alongside her mother at several official events, including the formal welcoming ceremony and a state dinner at the White House.
Arabella Kushner Greets Xi Jinping in Mandarin
Arabella greeted Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, in Mandarin during their visit to Washington. Her three-word welcome, translated as “Welcome to America,” immediately highlighted her long-standing familiarity with Chinese language and culture.
The moment was particularly notable because Arabella and Xi had met before. Their connection dates back to Donald Trump’s first presidential term, when Arabella was still a young child.
Her ability to speak Mandarin has remained one of the most recognizable aspects of her public appearances with the Trump family.
At 15, Arabella is now considerably older than she was when Xi first became familiar with her, making the reunion a noticeable moment during the state visit.
Arabella Has Known Xi Jinping Since Childhood
Arabella’s connection with Xi began when she was a young child. During a 2017 visit to China, Donald Trump showed Xi a video of his granddaughter performing in Mandarin.
Arabella appeared in traditional Chinese clothing while singing in the language. The performance received a warm response from Xi, who reportedly praised the young girl and described her as a “child star.”
The video later attracted significant attention in China, where Arabella’s ability to speak Mandarin made her a familiar name to many people who followed the Trump family.
Her Mandarin performances became part of the broader public interest surrounding the relationship between the Trump family and China during that period.
Her Mandarin Studies Began When She Was Very Young
Arabella’s exposure to Mandarin started when she was very young. Reports over the years have described her learning the language through a Chinese nanny and later receiving more formal instruction.
Some accounts have placed the beginning of her formal Mandarin studies around the age of three, while earlier reports described her exposure to the language even before that.
Because those accounts describe different stages of her language learning, the exact age at which her formal studies began is less clear than the broader fact that Mandarin has been part of her upbringing since childhood.
Her continued ability to speak the language has nevertheless remained visible through public appearances and videos.
Arabella Previously Performed for Xi and Peng
Arabella’s Mandarin skills were not limited to a single performance.
In earlier appearances, she was recorded speaking Mandarin before performing a traditional Chinese song. Her younger brother Joseph also appeared in some family videos connected to Chinese cultural events.
The performances helped establish Arabella’s reputation for having an unusual connection to Chinese language and culture for someone growing up in an American political family.
Her 2017 performance for Xi and Peng became especially well known because it happened during a period when the Trump administration was placing considerable attention on the U.S.-China relationship.
Years later, Arabella’s ability to greet Xi in Mandarin provided a direct link between those childhood appearances and the 2026 state visit.
Xi Jinping Reunites With Arabella Years Later
The 2026 meeting also carried a personal element because Xi had not seen Arabella in person for several years.
When he first met her, Arabella was a small child. By the time of the September 2026 visit, she was a teenager.
Her reunion with Xi and Peng therefore offered a visible reminder of how much she had grown since their earlier encounters.
The interaction also stood out because Arabella was not attending the event simply as a child accompanying her family. At 15, she was appearing at a major formal event connected to a state visit involving two of the world’s most prominent political figures.
Arabella Joins Ivanka Trump at the White House Ceremony
Arabella and Ivanka Trump were present for the formal welcoming events surrounding Xi Jinping’s arrival in Washington.
Arabella wore a white belted midi dress, while Ivanka appeared in a light blue outfit by Chinese designer Guo Pei.
The mother and daughter were positioned prominently during the ceremony, alongside senior members of the Trump administration and their spouses.
Arabella’s appearance attracted attention not only because of her connection to Xi but also because it marked another step in her increasing visibility at major public events involving her family.
She remained alongside Ivanka during portions of the official program as the United States welcomed the Chinese delegation.
Arabella Also Attended the State Dinner
Arabella was among the guests at the White House state dinner held for Xi Jinping and Peng Liyuan.
The dinner took place in the East Room and brought together government officials, members of the Trump family, business leaders and other prominent guests.
Ivanka and Arabella were both included on the official guest list.
For Arabella, the dinner represented another significant formal appearance. She attended alongside her mother and was seated among senior figures from American government and public life.
Her presence also connected the formal diplomatic occasion with the family history surrounding her earlier interactions with Xi.
Arabella’s 2017 Mandarin Performance Became Widely Known
Arabella’s relationship with Mandarin first received broad attention after videos from 2017 circulated publicly.
In one widely discussed appearance, she sang in Mandarin while wearing traditional Chinese clothing. The performance was presented to Xi during Donald Trump’s visit to China.
Xi responded positively to the performance and gave Arabella an “A+,” according to reports from the time.
The episode became part of the public image surrounding Arabella, particularly in Chinese media. Her ability to communicate in Mandarin made her stand out from many other young members of prominent American families.
That early attention followed her for years, making her 2026 Mandarin greeting to Xi a continuation of an already familiar story rather than an isolated moment.
Ivanka Trump and Arabella Share the Spotlight
Ivanka Trump has frequently appeared with her children at high-profile public and political events.
During Xi’s 2026 visit, Arabella’s presence added another dimension to Ivanka’s appearance at the official ceremony and state dinner.
The two were photographed together during the visit, with Arabella accompanying her mother as part of the broader Trump family presence.
Ivanka’s choice to wear a gown by Chinese designer Guo Pei also attracted attention during the ceremony. Arabella’s Mandarin greeting, meanwhile, connected the event directly to her own history with Chinese culture.
Together, those details made the mother-and-daughter appearance one of the more closely watched family moments surrounding the state visit.
Arabella’s Connection to Chinese Culture Goes Beyond Mandarin
Arabella’s public connection to China has involved more than simply learning a foreign language.
Her childhood performances included Chinese songs and cultural elements, while her family’s visits and interactions with Chinese officials gave her opportunities to use the language in public settings.
That history helps explain why her greeting to Xi in 2026 received attention.
For Arabella, speaking Mandarin during the visit was also a continuation of something she had been doing since childhood.
The difference this time was her age and the setting. Instead of appearing as a small child in a family video, she was a teenager participating in a formal state visit attended by senior government officials.
A New Chapter in a Long-Running Connection
Arabella Kushner’s meeting with Xi Jinping in September 2026 brought together two different periods of her life.
Her first widely publicized interactions with Xi happened when she was a young child learning Mandarin. Almost a decade later, she was able to greet the Chinese president herself during his state visit to Washington.
The moment also showed how a childhood interest can remain part of a public figure’s identity years later.
Arabella’s Mandarin greeting was brief, but its significance came from the history behind it. She had previously performed for Xi, appeared in videos speaking Chinese and developed a recognizable association with the language.
Her appearance at the 2026 White House events therefore marked both a reunion and a continuation of a story that began when she was a child.
For the Trump family, the state visit brought together politics, diplomacy and family presence. For Arabella, it also provided an opportunity to demonstrate a skill she has developed over many years.
At 15, her reunion with Xi showed that the Mandarin connection first noticed during her childhood remains part of her public story today.
