Donald Trump – Xi Jinping: the meeting of the 'great return' ideology

This meeting in Beijing took place right after the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and exactly one year after Mr. Trump was elected President of the United States.

While Chinese President Xi Jinping's status was raised to a new level after the 19th Congress of the Communist Party of China last month, this Asian tour is considered an extremely important opportunity for Donald Trump to pull his domestic support rate down to a record low after exactly 1 year of being elected US President.

Chinese President Xi Jinping (left) and US President Donald Trump met at Mar-a-Lago in April 2017. Photo: Reuters

In Japan, the first stop considered the most pleasant in this long Asian tour, US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe signed a hat with the words "Make Alliance Even Greater", similar to his campaign slogan "Make America Great Again".

In South Korea, Mr. Trump also praised the “great” cooperation between Washington and Seoul.

But that was with two key US allies in Northeast Asia, and the meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping today (November 8) remains a mystery.

However, it is certain that the leaders of the world's two leading economies have one thing in common: they both want their countries to "be great again".

Three meetings

Chinese President Xi Jinping will roll out the red carpet for US President Donald Trump as he arrives in Beijing today (November 8), marking the third time the leaders of the world's two leading economies have met this year.

Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zheng Zeguang revealed last week that the US President's visit this time "will have special significance" and pledged to make it a historic meeting.

The two leaders declared they had established a “friendship” since their first meeting at President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida in April 2017, despite their differing views on trade and how to handle the North Korea issue.

That friendship was perhaps built on the basis of shared nationalism, between Mr. Trump's "Make America Great Again" policy on one side and Mr. Xi Jinping's declaration in his closing speech at the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China that he would "make tireless efforts and devote all his efforts on the journey to realize the rejuvenation of China."

Donald Trump has a habit of showing his superiority by shaking hands firmly and strongly with world leaders. However, the US President will probably have to consider carefully when meeting President Xi Jinping, who was recently re-elected as General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, this time.

Donald Trump himself had to admit that Xi Jinping had been "elevated to an extraordinary level", to the point that the US President likened that some people could call the Chinese President "King of China".

One side is "like a tiger with wings", the other side is "heavy with the burden of the country"

In fact, observers have to admit that Xi Jinping has become China’s most powerful leader since Mao Zedong. Meanwhile, Donald Trump is struggling with a persistently low approval rating that has hit its lowest level in seven decades.

“The 2009 financial crisis and then the chaos of the Trump White House have added to China’s confidence, even arrogance, that its time has finally come,” US-China relations expert Orville Schell told AFP.

“Xi Jinping has dramatically improved China’s wealth and power, and that makes it even harder for him to compromise,” the expert pointed out.

According to Schell, for Donald Trump, “winning is everything in this life”. He believes that the US President “hasn’t had many wins, so if he can bring home a win in China, that would be extremely meaningful”.

Donald Trump is the first head of state to visit China since Xi Jinping was re-elected as General Secretary of the Communist Party of China. Beijing has promised a grand reception that is “beyond a state visit,” and this is a significant “boost” for the US President amid his dismal approval ratings. In addition to the honor guard and state dinner, Beijing is expected to sign a series of multi-billion dollar agreements with Washington during Donald Trump’s visit.

But “Xi Jinping can also ‘drive’ [US President – ​​ND] if he [Donald Trump – ND] is not careful,” Mr. Schell warned, adding that all the lavish receptions could be aimed at distracting the US from the myriad of contentious issues with China, from the trade deficit to tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

“For Xi Jinping, it’s all about his own image and trying to get Donald Trump to look friendly to China,” said Ely Ratner, a China expert at the Washington-based Council on Foreign Relations.

So far, that strategy seems to be working, as the US President's harsh statements about China during the election campaign a year ago suddenly gave way to "winged" praise for President Xi Jinping.

“I like him very much, I call him a friend and he calls me a friend. He represents China and I represent the United States,” President Donald Trump said on November 6 while visiting Tokyo, Japan. Chinese officials also asserted that the two leaders have a “good personal friendship.”

But Beijing will not be complacent.

“Right now, Donald Trump appears to be quite friendly to China, but he is still a businessman after all,” said Chinese political expert Hu Xingdou.

This expert believes that China is no longer as nervous as when the two leaders first met in the US because "fortune has reversed" as President Xi Jinping's position is rising day by day.

However, Chinese observers still believe that Mr. Xi Jinping will be cautious.

“The US is in a strategic position of ‘two steps forward, one step back’ and it is clear that Washington is still completely leading the world,” said Xu Guoqi, a foreign affairs expert at the University of Hong Kong. “China still cannot match that power.”

According to VOV