Trump gets red-carpet welcome in China, but past Beijing trip shows pageantry only goes so far
President Trump received a red-carpet welcome when he landed in Beijing on Wednesday, with a military honor guard, band and children waving American and Chinese flags ahead of high-stakes talks...
By Fox News · Fox News
President Trump received a red-carpet welcome when he landed in Beijing on Wednesday, with a military honor guard, band and children waving American and Chinese flags ahead of high-stakes talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping . The ceremony also highlighted the bigger question around Trump’s return to China: whether this visit can yield more lasting progress than his 2017 trip, which featured major business announcements but was later followed by a sharp deterioration in U.S.-China trade relations. The meeting comes as trade tensions, the Iran war and disputes over Taiwan place new pressure on Washington and Beijing to stabilize relations between the world’s two largest economies. TRUMP HEADS TO BEIJING FOR HIGH-STAKES XI TALKS AS TAIWAN TENSIONS, TRADE DISPUTES TEST US STRENGTH The red carpet was rolled out with a welcome ceremony consisting of military honor guard and a military band with Chinese children waving American and Chinese flags. "Welcome, welcome! Warm welcome!" the children chanted in Chinese. Trump exited Air Force One and was greeted by United States Ambassador to China David Perdue, Chinese Vice President H.E. Han Zheng, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the United States H.E. Xie Feng, and Executive Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs H.E. Ma Zhaoxu. First Lady Melania Trump accompanied Trump nearly nine years ago for his first state visit. The 2017 trip emphasized pomp, personal diplomacy and commercial announcements, and included excursions such as a Forbidden City tour, a Peking opera performance, and a formal welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People. The 2017 trip produced more than $250 billion in announced commercial deals and cooperation pledges, but it did not prevent trade relations from deteriorating in 2018. Most notably, Trump announced a $12 billion deal for cellphone chips from Qualcomm and $37 billion for Boeing commercial jets, AP reported at the time. DONALD TRUMP DETAILS 'MOST EXCITING PART' OF CHINA TRADE AG…