Xi Jinping: New Friend of the U.S.?

"This decision [to visit the US] fully captures the features and requirements of China-U.S. relations in the new era, that is, to develop mutually beneficial cooperation as partners based on the principle of mutual respect," he added.

For the U.S., Xi's visit provides an opportunity to evaluate the Chinese leader's personality and to find any important indicators of leadership style.

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"The world is still very much making up its mind about Xi Jinping, which is one of the reasons the impressions made on this visit will be so important. We know little about his personal policy leanings, as is indeed the case with most of the incoming generation of leaders," said Duncan Innes-Ker, senior editor and economist for the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) in London.

Sino-American relations remain lukewarm with a little tug-and-pull here and there, especially over economic issues. But overall, no direct and dramatic conflicts have truly erupted between the two powers since the EP-3 incident (in 2001, a U.S. intelligence aircraft and Chinese Air Force plane collided off the coast of Hainan, causing the Chinese pilot's death).

However, it seems unlikely that the visit will dispel the existing level of mistrust between the U.S and China or that the Obama administration will acquire an in-depth assessment of Xi's political leanings in just five, full days.

Why Xi?

The President of the People's Republic of China (PRC) is chosen by the National People's Congress (NPC), according to the Chinese Government's official web portal. However, it is commonly believed that the leader of the PRC is actually secretly hand-selected by a small group of powerful men, the current Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Politburo Standing Committee, and then confirmed by the NPC.

The strongest evidence that Xi Jinping will in fact succeed Hu Jintao in October of this year was his election to the Vice Presidency of China's Military Committee last year, said Song Guoyou, associate professor for the Center for American Studies at Fudan University in Shanghai. 

Xi Jinping, at 58 years of age, can be described as "sedate, tolerant, and pragmatic," Song Guoyou also said. These characteristics in addition to his smooth and steady rise to Vice President of China make him a most favorable candidate.

Although known as a "princeling," a pejorative term used to describe descendants of national revolutionary heroes who are thought to win their political positions through nepotism, Xi Jinping does have elite credentials.

The son of Xi Zhongxun, who was banished by Mao Zedong during the Cultural Revolution, Xi worked out in the countryside for seven years before being named party secretary. These years of manual labor are recorded as his "largest sufferings."