The image President Trump posted from an airport meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping prompted online scrutiny over apparent edits. Observers pointed to inconsistencies — a missing glove, altered shoes for Monica Crowley, and the absence of Melania Trump — compared with press photos. Crowley, the U.S. Chief of Protocol, was misidentified at first. The photo was shared as Trump and Xi began a state visit that included planned talks on artificial intelligence and cooperation.
Trump’s Airport Photo With Xi Prompts Online Scrutiny Over Possible Edits
A photo shared by President Donald Trump of meeting Chinese leader (@RealDonaldTrump, Truth Social)
A photograph President Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social account from an airport meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping has drawn widespread online attention and questions about whether the image was altered.
The image, shared Thursday, shows Trump and Xi standing side by side on a red carpet in front of Xi's aircraft. Trump is pictured raising his right arm in a salute, the words Only Trump appear in the frame, and a military plane is captured flying overhead.
What Users Noticed
Observers compared the Truth Social image with press photos and flagged several inconsistencies. In agency photos, Trump was photographed wearing two black gloves, but the posted image appears to show only one. Photographers also captured Trump flinching and ducking his head during the flyover, a sequence critics say is at odds with the posed Truth Social shot.
Trump and Xi kicked off the state visit by speaking about their relationship and areas for mutual cooperation (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Another discrepancy involves the lone woman visible behind the two leaders. Some social media users misidentified her as Trump aide Natalie Harp; she is actually Monica Crowley, the U.S. Chief of Protocol and a former Fox News anchor. In Reuters images Crowley was wearing shoe styles resembling Mary Janes with a horizontal strap, while the Truth Social photo shows a different, classic nude pump style.
Notably absent from the image Trump posted was first lady Melania Trump, who was present at the airport event but does not appear in the shared photo. That omission prompted further speculation about whether the image had been edited, manually or with artificial intelligence.
Context From The State Visit
The photo was shared as Trump and Xi began a state visit that both leaders framed in constructive terms. Trump described a long-standing personal rapport with Xi and said the agenda would include discussions of artificial intelligence and other issues. Xi likewise spoke of building closer diplomatic ties to promote peaceful coexistence.
"From the time of my first election in 2016, President Xi and I have forged a friendship, a truly great friendship," Trump said at the start of the visit.
An earlier version of this story and headline incorrectly identified the woman in the photo as Natalie Harp. The person pictured is Chief of Protocol Monica Crowley. (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
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