Whatever happened between President Donald Trump and Xi Jinping on Tuesday, it produced a version of the American president that few people back home would recognize.
During a State Banquet, Trump called his visit to the nation “a great honor” and offered effusive praise for the Chinese President — a sharp departure from the combative language that has defined much of his approach to Beijing, both on the campaign trail and during his administration.
The shift was striking — especially for a man whose political brand is also built on dominance, on being the loudest and most powerful presence in any room he enters.
But for Trump, who spent years describing China as a “job-stealer and national security threat”, arrived in Beijing sounding almost unrecognizable, according to The New York Times.
“You’re a great leader … I say it to everybody,” Trump told Xi early in the day. “Sometimes people don’t like me saying it. I say it anyway because it’s true. I always say the truth.”
Xi, however, was not in the mood for flattery. Even as he smiled and welcomed Trump, the Chinese leader wasted no time setting boundaries and plunged almost immediately into a pointed warning about Taiwan.
“The U.S. must handle the Taiwan issue with utmost caution,” Xi said, according to China’s official Xinhua news agency — a declaration delivered just minutes into his public remarks, signaling that whatever warmth Trump brought to Beijing, there were clear limits to how far rapprochement could go.
The contrast between the two leaders was impossible to miss. While Trump cast the summit in deeply personal terms, Xi arrived disciplined and scripted, projecting the confidence of a peer superpower rather than a partner eager to please.
Speaking to assembled guests at the dinner, Trump opened his toast by expressing gratitude for the reception he had received.
“This is a great honor. It was a fantastic day. And in particular I want to thank President Xi, my friend, for this magnificent welcome. And it really was a magnificent welcome like none other.”
Trump went on to describe the diplomatic exchanges of the day in glowing terms, signaling optimism about the state of US-China relations.
“We had extremely positive and productive conversations and meetings today with the Chinese delegation earlier, and this evening is another cherished opportunity to discuss among friends some of the things that we discussed today. All good for the United States and for China.”
The remarks drew applause from those in attendance. Trump then reached back into history to frame the relationship between the two nations, invoking America’s earliest diplomatic ties with China.
“The relationship between the American and Chinese people goes all the way back to America’s founding,” he said.
Adding, “The first American consul to China, Samuel Shaw, arrived on the first American trading ship to reach these shores in 1784. The Chinese merchants had a name for the Americans. They called their visitors the new people. Two and a half centuries later, that first connection has grown into one of the most consequential relationships in world history.”
Trump closed by pointing to Founding Fathers as symbols of long-standing mutual admiration between the two civilizations:
“Founding Father Benjamin Franklin published the sayings of Confucius in his colonial newspaper, and today a sculpture recognizing that ancient Chinese sage is carved into the face of the United States Supreme Court very proudly.”
