WASHINGTON — President Trump arrived in Beijing on Wednesday without a tarmac greeting from Chinese President Xi Jinping — but the seeming snub was actually an “upgrade” from his last welcome in 2017, according to an expert.
“It’s actually quite revealing from a protocol perspective,” said Isabelle Vladoiu, founder of the US Institute of Diplomacy and Human Rights.
“Xi Jinping did not personally greet Trump at the airport in 2017 either, but this time Beijing noticeably upgraded the reception by sending Vice President Han Zheng along with both ambassadors and senior foreign affairs officials.”
Trump’s arrival nine years ago — the most recent visit to China by an American president — featured a lower-level official appearing to welcome him, said Vladoiu, who has worked with many international organizations and authored the book “Business Etiquette Secrets.”
“In Chinese diplomatic protocol, rank is never accidental,” she said.
“In 2017, Trump was greeted by Yang Jiechi who was a senior official and state councilor but not as high rank as the vice president. China is signaling therefore that this visit carries greater strategic and geopolitical weight than before.”
Trump arrived aboard Air Force One with an all-star entourage, including Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, whose AI chip-making business is the world’s largest company by market capitalization.
Trump said as he departed Washington that he expects talks with Xi to focus on trade relations. Other expected topics include ending illicit fentanyl exports to the US and the American war with Iran, though Trump on Tuesday downplayed plans to discuss the conflict.
