Trump brushes off Xi’s breathtaking 300-year-old trees with one burning question before heading home
Before Donald Trump left China, Xi Jinping wowed him one last time by taking him on a tour of the walled imperial garden of his opulent palace.
The two leaders toured Zhongnanhai, the guarded complex where China’s top leaders live and work. Cameras recorded Xi holding Trump’s hand and guiding him through an archway towards a grove of 300-year-old trees.
While Xi was explaining how some trees join together, Trump stopped the tour with a sharp question.
‘Can you ask the president this: When presidents or prime ministers of other countries come to visit, does he bring them here?’ Trump turned to his translator and spoke.
“Very rarely,” Xi replied with a chuckle. ‘For example, Putin was here.’
At the end of the tour, Trump stands in front of the cameras and says how much he loves the Chinese leader’s fortified compound: ‘I could get used to it.’
The viral moment was one of several unscripted interactions between Xi and Trump at the high-stakes summit.
Hours later, before boarding Air Force One, Trump’s team threw away Chinese gifts and items collected during the trip, a standard precaution against listening devices and other intelligence threats.
While Xi was explaining how some trees join together, Trump stopped the tour with a sharp question.
‘Can you ask the president this: When presidents or prime ministers of other countries come to visit, does he bring them here?’ Trump turned to his translator and said:
Trump’s team threw away Chinese gifts and items collected during the trip, a standard precaution against bugging devices and other intelligence threats
After sitting down to afternoon tea, Xi spoke through a translator and explained why he had invited Trump to Zhongnanhai; This was a rare invitation for outside leaders.
“I specifically chose this place to reciprocate the hospitality shown to me at Mar-a-Lago in 2017,” Xi said.
Trump smiled and thanked the Chinese leader for the rare invitation.
Trump faced criticism throughout the summit for heaping personal praise on Xi, the authoritarian leader of America’s fiercest rival.
In his opening speech at the Great Hall of the People, Trump called Xi a “great leader” and said it was an honor to be his friend.
The President predicted that US-China relations will be ‘better than ever’.
In an interview with Sean Hannity on Fox News, Trump also complimented Xi’s physical appearance, calling him “very tall” and claiming Hollywood couldn’t have cast a better-looking leader in China.
The risky summit gave the two leaders a chance to confront the most pressing issues between their countries: the rise of artificial intelligence, China’s designs on Taiwan and the war in Iran.
Trump faced criticism throughout the summit for heaping personal praise on Xi, the authoritarian leader of America’s toughest rival
In an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, Trump also complimented Xi’s physical appearance, calling him “very tall.”
China is one of Iran’s closest allies and the largest buyer of Iranian oil.
Xi had previously condemned Trump’s naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which carries one-fifth of the world’s oil.
Towards the end of the summit, Trump said Xi had promised not to provide military equipment to Iran as ceasefire efforts stalled, but he did not say whether China had agreed to mediate an end to the conflict.
“He said he wouldn’t provide military equipment, that’s a big statement,” Trump told Hannity on Thursday. ‘He said it strongly.’
Xi struck a harsher tone on Taiwan, warning Trump that there could be “conflicts and even clashes” between the two countries if the issue is handled incorrectly.
He described the candidate as the most important issue between Washington and Beijing and claimed it could jeopardize the entire relationship.
