The 21-year-old son of the actress and Brad Pitt previously attended college in South Korea.
Angelina Jolie and Maddox Jolie-Pitt enjoyed a high-profile night out on Wednesday.
The mother-son duo looked chic as they attended the State Dinner hosted by President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden at the White House in Washington, DC, honoring South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and First Lady Kim Keon Hee.
Maddox, 21, wore a black YSL tuxedo and a Cartier ring for the occasion, with Jolie, 47, opting for a flowy cream-colored dress that ET has learned was made for her years ago and a vintage Chanel jacket. The actress styled her tresses down in loose waves and completed the look with a red lip and classic jewelry from her personal collection.
"Asia-America relations are important to Angelina's family," a source tells ET. "She and the children have had close ties to the region, including South Korea, for many years. Maddox studied at Yonsei University in Seoul. Angelina has visited South Korea many times for her humanitarian and refugee advocacy over the past two decades, and as an artist. Angelina and Maddox are honored to attend this State Dinner."
According to a White House press release issued last month, the dinner marked the 70th anniversary of the U.S.-ROK alliance, "which is critical to advancing peace, stability, and prosperity for our two countries, the Indo-Pacific, and around the world."
Among the other celebrity guests at Wednesday's dinner were Chip and Joanna Gaines. Earlier this month, the Magnolia Network stars shared touching footage from their family's recent visit to Seoul, Korea, where Joanna's mom, Nan Stevens, is from.
"For years, my mother has talked about taking her three daughters to Seoul, Korea when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom. And for years, that’s all it was — a dream we’d talk about in that 'maybe, someday' way we all do when something feels just a little out of reach," the mother of five shared. "But this year, we decided to finally book it, and we convinced 24 members of our family to come with us to visit the place where my mom grew up."
While on the trip, Joanna said that she met family she'd only ever seen pictures of and saw the famous cherry blossom trees in full bloom.
"We walked the same streets my mother did as a young girl, and then again as a young woman with my dad’s hand in hers. In a lot of ways, this trip felt like coming home," the home renovator wrote. "Somehow, connecting with my mom’s past made my own story feel more complete. Feeling grateful for every moment this trip gave us ❤️🇰🇷"
Olympic gold medalist Chloe Kim and L.A. Dodgers pitcher Chan Ho Park, the first South Korea-born player in U.S. Major League Baseball history, were also among the attendees.
Broadway stars Norm Lewis, Lea Salonga and Jessica Vosk also performed at the event.
Jolie notably visited South Korea in 2019 while dropping Maddox, her eldest child, off for his first year of college at Yonsei University, where he planned to study biochemistry. Later that year, the Maleficent star relived the relatable parental experience in an interview with ET.
"What was very beautiful is the way everybody said goodbye. When it was time to take him to the airport -- some jumped into the car to take him -- and everybody was, it was very...," Jolie told ET on the red carpet, her voice trailing off. "When you know that your kids love each other and you see the way they all -- without any kind of prompting or pushing -- give each other notes, hug each other, take each other, support each other, then you feel like they're going to be okay and they're always going to have each other."
Jolie adorably admitted to embarrassing her children with an "ugly cry," revealing that she had a difficult time walking away from Maddox.
"I also, just at some point, had the big [sun]glasses and the amount of times I turned and waved. I do know it was the one moment in my life I think I turned around six times before the airport just... and he sweetly stayed and kept waving, knowing that I was going to keep turning around. You could feel he knew he couldn't leave," she said. "It's nice to know how much he knows he's loved."
Jolie continued gushing over her child, whom she adopted from an orphanage in Cambodia when he was seven months old, in a separate 2019 interview with ET.
"I'm so happy for him that [Maddox has] grown up into such a good man," she shared. "I say that 'cause he's smart and he's doing his work but he's also wild. He's balanced in his teenage years."
Jolie also revealed, "He got tattooed."
Maddox returned to the U.S. in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Including Maddox, Jolie shares six children with her ex-husband, Brad Pitt: Pax Thien, 19, Zahara Marley, 18, Shiloh Nouvel, 16, and twins Knox Leon and Vivienne Marcheline, 14.
Wednesday's appearance comes months after Jolie stepped down from her role with the United Nations, where she also served on the high-profile U.N. High Commissioner of Refugees Special Envoy, after more than 20 years.
"I am stepping down today from my work with the UN Refugee Agency," Jolie said in an Instagram post. "I believe in many things the UN does, particularly the lives it saves through emergency relief. UNHCR is full of amazing people making a difference to people’s lives every day. Refugees are the people I admire most in the world and I am dedicated to working with them for the rest of my life. I will be working now with organizations led by people most directly affected by conflict, that give the greatest voice to them."
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