Trump cites great chemistry with Xi
US President Donald Trump hailed his “great chemistry” with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday, declaring that they could find solutions to trade disputes and the North Korean crisis as they held crucial talks in Beijing.
Xi greeted Trump with pageantry at the imposing Great Hall of the People, next to Tiananmen Square, on the second day of his visit to China – the critical stop in a five-nation tour of Asia.
The two leaders have stepped up the flattery but the US president was expected to prod Xi to make more efforts to slash China’s massive trade surplus with the United States and curb its economic ties with North Korea.
“Our meeting this morning... was excellent in discussing North Korea and I do believe there’s a solution to that, as you do,” Trump said as he sat across from Xi.
He did not elaborate on what the solution might be but his administration believes that China’s economic leverage over North Korea is the key to strong-arming Pyongyang into halting its nuclear weapons and missile programs.
Xi, who has repeatedly urged the United States and North Korea to hold negotiations to resolve the crisis peacefully, told Trump that their nations should “strengthen communication and coordination in major international and regional issues including the Korean Peninsula and Afghanistan”.
The trip comes as Trump faces the lowest approval ratings for a US president in seven decades, and with the one-year anniversary of his election Wednesday spoiled by big Democrat wins in state and mayoral votes.
Meanwhile, Xi cemented his status as the most powerful Chinese leader in a generation at a Communist Party congress last month, when his name was inscribed into the constitution.
On Trump’s first state visit to China, a military band played the US and Chinese anthems, ceremonial cannon fire erupted, and the two leaders reviewed a military honor guard just across from Tiananmen Square – the site of the army’s deadly crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in 1989.
Children waved US and Chinese flags at the two leaders, a day after Xi treated Trump to a tour of the Forbidden City, capped by an opera performance and a private dinner.
“Emphasizing pomp over substance is the Chinese way. With President Trump, they think that the state-visit plus treatment will impress him and buy China some goodwill,” Bonnie Glaser, China expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, told AFP.
Evidently pleased with the first day of his visit, Trump circumvented China’s internet censorship system to post a message to Xi on Twitter, which is banned in the country.
“THANK YOU for the beautiful welcome China! @FLOTUS Melania and I will never forget it!” wrote Trump, who also posted an AFP photo of his visit.
Both leaders say they have struck up a friendship since Trump hosted Xi for a plush visit at the billionaire’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida for their first meeting in April.