A parade of foreign leaders are desperately hoping to receive coveted invitations to President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration later this month.
By tradition, foreign leaders do not attend the inauguration of a U.S. president, but Trump sparked a row after ignoring that precedent and inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the ceremony on January 20. Mr. Xi has already declined the offer, and a senior envoy is expected to attend in his place.
But many others have cut phone lines to agents in Washington, D.C., and are demanding access, sources told the Post.
“They're all going crazy: Chile, Peru, Nigeria, Mozambique,” said one registered foreign agent, adding that the leaders were “doing everything they could to make it.”
For most people, the answer is probably no.
“I tell my clients the truth: You won't be able to go. If you're Costa Rican, there's no way you'll be invited to this inauguration. What's the added value? Bringing business and big companies from your country. It's not like it's coming.
Trump will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States on January 20th on the West Front of the Capitol. Chief Justice John Roberts will take the oath of office at noon. Then, a blizzard of balls and parties will descend on Washington as the nation celebrates a peaceful transfer of power, a concept foreign to many leaders currently scrambling for an invitation.
Just as wealthy Americans and corporations are now lining up to donate to President Trump's inaugural fund, which has more than $170 million in coffers, foreign leaders are also lining up to donate to President Trump's inaugural fund, which has more than $170 million in coffers, so foreign leaders are also lining up to donate to President Trump's inaugural fund, which has more than $170 million in coffers. They are driven by a desire to raise their issues with allies.
For example, Nigeria's President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is likely to want security assistance in the country's troubled north and economic investment in the more stable south, one official said.
President Trump has also invited leaders close to him politically and ideologically.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said she had been invited and would like to participate. Argentina's Javier Millay has been invited and is planning to go. El Salvador's Nayib Bukele, whose crackdown on gang violence turned his country around, and Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro were also invited.
Another world leader making strong offers is Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who has publicly expressed interest in going as well. President Trump has not formally invited Ukraine's embattled leader, but said last month, “If he wants to come, I would like to invite him.”
“There are people around [Zelensky] I'm trying to invite him through various means. . . . They are approaching Trump allies,” said a Trump official familiar with the matter.
“Due to the international turmoil that has occurred over the past four years, there is intense interest. Many world leaders are taking their own steps to change the way President Trump is responding to these crises on the international stage. We're trying to reach out to him first so we can share our voices,” said Brian Lanza, a former Trump campaign senior adviser and now president. Outside consultant.
