Trump took another opportunity to get a round of golf as things like serving relatively mundane American cuisine and performing diplomatic niceties might best be accomplished in DC, where the PRC has an embassy. The two parties managed to not discuss the more controversial elements that might even have greater effect on trade: climate change, North Korea, and human rights.
More importantly Trump got in at least another round of golf.
Not a peep in People’s Daily about the Syrian missile attack, as the usual diplomatic boiler plate got produced. If there was a gaffe, it may never be mentioned, but we soon may see the result particularly in the subsequent actions of increased regional military activity in East Asia.
The PRC state news agency however had other ideas … Trump’s stunt has backfired if he had hoped to imply China’s tacit endorsement because President Xi was apparently informed after Trump sat down to dinner. The Chinese issued a nearly immediate condemnation of the Syrian attack on Friday at the UN. Sorry Don, apparently revolutions are never dinner parties even if Trumpian diplomacy requires the table cloth be pulled while the dishes remain.
The tete-a-tete, which took place in an aura of cordiality in what Trump calls the "Southern #WhiteHouse," also cultivated a sound working relationship and personal rapport between the two leaders, who preside over what many describe as the most important bilateral relationship in today's world.
Both sides agree that the meeting, which has drawn worldwide attention against the backdrop of mounting uncertainties on the bilateral and international horizons, "was positive and fruitful," said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
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And of course there is an unspoken undercurrent voiced by dissidents:
For his part, Trump has not been quiet about China’s human rights record. Instead, he has shown a begrudging respect for China’s strength through authoritarianism. Shortly after the 1989 brutal crackdown on democracy activists in Tiananmen Square, Trump praised Chinese leaders for the strength they displayed in quelling the protests. And during a March 2016 GOP debate, he referred to the Tiananmen pro-democracy movement as a “riot.” Trump has also indicated he would end the U.S. policy of promoting democracy around the world. This is a distressing stance that should garner more criticism among Republican colleagues. Why is a president from the party of Ronald Reagan showing that kind of warmth towards the authorities in Beijing, and such indifference to the struggles of people living under Communist repression?
On North Korea, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said both sides agreed to increase cooperation and work with the international community to push North Korea to abandon its “illicit weapons programmes”.
But in signs that showed the two nations were divided over the issue, Tillerson said there was “no kind of a package arrangement to resolve this” and that the US was prepared to act alone.
“President Trump indicated to President Xi ... that we would be happy to work with them, but we understand it creates unique problems for them and challenges and that we would, and are, prepared to chart our own course if this is something China is just unable to coordinate with us.”
So apparently the “summit” was meant to promote Trump properties yet again since the only difference between a Florida meeting and a DC meeting was Trump’s golf outing.
That won't happen this week. Chinese President Xi Jinping's disdain for golf is almost as intense as Abe's love of the game.
It's safe to say there will not be any golf, said a senior national security official who briefed reporters about Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit this week. The two leaders might walk around, the official said, but there will not be anything formal or anything involving golf clubs.
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