In China, Xi-Trump summit seen as a sign of the country's rising status
Chinese state media and the public treated Xi Jinping's Washington visit as a sign of China's elevated global standing, with the summit drawing widespread praise at home.
The elaborate reception US President Donald Trump gave Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington drew intense and largely positive coverage in China, where state media and members of the public read the visit as a sign of the country's growing international standing.
Trump's rare personal welcome for Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, at the airport, along with the bilateral talks and cultural events the two leaders attended, were prominently featured by Chinese state broadcasters and newspapers. The official People's Daily devoted its entire front page to the trip, running six photographs of the meetings between the two presidents.
Online interest was similarly high. On the search engine Baidu, the three most-viewed topics on Friday were the Trump-Xi talks, the state dinner attended by Xi and Peng, and the president's Mid-Autumn Festival greetings to the Chinese people, which coincided with the visit.
"I read the news that the US reception standards for President Xi are very high," said Xiang Ziyu, a postgraduate student in Beijing. "I'm quite impressed because it shows that our country has become really powerful."
That sentiment was echoed by several people interviewed in the capital and in comments on Chinese social media, where users praised cooperation between Beijing and Washington.
Shen Zuohang, a Beijing resident, said the coverage and the apparent rapport between the two leaders on issues such as trade, artificial intelligence and security had left him reassured. "We have no trade war and no military conflict. Even on the issue of Taiwan we are moving in a good direction instead of having heated confrontation," he said. "The two sides are handling issues in a more acquiescent way."
According to China's Foreign Ministry, Xi urged Trump to oppose Taiwan's independence and to handle the matter with caution. Trump did not immediately comment on Taiwan, though he had previously described US arms sales to the island as open to negotiation with China.
Xiang, the student, said the summit had sent a positive signal overall and would help improve Chinese public opinion of bilateral relations. "It is better than not communicating," he said.