Marco Rubio Heads To Beijing With Donald Trump After China Changes His Name

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was heading to Beijing on May 12 alongside President Donald Trump despite being under Chinese sanctions, a move described as possible after China changed the transliteration of his name.

“It's a small change to avoid a major diplomatic crisis”

20 Minutes

The Straits Times reported that as a U.S. senator, Rubio “fiercely championed human rights in China,” and that China retaliated by imposing sanctions on him twice, including an entry ban under the old spelling.

20 Minutes

Rubio, now 54, was seen boarding Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, while a state department official confirmed only that he was travelling with Trump.

The Straits Times said Chinese government and official media began using a different Chinese character for “lu” shortly before Rubio took office in January 2025, and two diplomats believed the change was made because he was under sanctions tied to the old spelling.

Le Parisien similarly described the workaround as an altered transliteration of the first syllable, saying “Only the accent on the letter 'u' changes.”

President Donald Trump was due in Beijing Wednesday for the first visit to China by a U.S. president in nearly a decade, as he sought to ramp up trade amid potential friction over Taiwan and Iran.

Iraqi News said Trump left Washington on Tuesday and told reporters he expected a “long talk” with Xi Jinping about Iran, which relies on China as the top customer for its US-sanctioned oil.

Al-Jazeera Net

The same article said Trump would speak to Xi about US arms sales to Taiwan, and that China’s controls on rare earth exports were among the topics expected to be taken up by the heads of the world’s top two economies.

CBS News reported Trump said in the Oval Office that “He's a great gentleman,” and added that he told reporters last week, “I have a very good relationship with President Xi.”

CBS News also said the president was expected to leave the White House Tuesday for the summit, with Beijing 12 hours ahead of Washington and a delegation that could include Apple’s Tim Cook and Blackrock’s Larry Fink, among others.

The Rubio trip and the broader Trump-Xi summit were framed in the sources around how the U.S. and China handle human rights, trade, and Iran, with multiple outlets noting Rubio’s earlier focus on China and later alignment with Trump’s approach.

“Washington — President Trump heads to China Tuesday for a highly anticipated with Chinese President Xi Jinping, following through with a meeting Mr”

CBS News

The Straits Times said Rubio was the key author of congressional legislation that imposed wide sanctions on China over alleged use of forced labour by the mostly Muslim Uyghur minority, and that he had spoken out against Beijing’s clampdown in Hong Kong.

South China Morning Post reported that Rubio would become the first sitting U.S. Secretary of State under Chinese sanctions to visit Beijing, and it said he was widely viewed as a leading contender for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination.

In parallel, CBS News highlighted that the meeting would include discussion of energy and Taiwan, and it quoted Trump saying Xi would give him a “big, fat hug” when they meet.

CFR’s analysis said the summit was delayed in March following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, and it argued that “the result has been an uneasy détente, albeit one favoring Beijing,” while listing Taiwan and Iran as central issues likely to be raised.