Trump suddenly has “incredibly warm” feelings for China

President Donald Trump’s high-profile visit to China was seen as another chance to slip on a diplomatic banana peel. Instead, it turned into one big love-in.

Despite previously harsh criticism of Beijing and President Xi Jinping on topics such as trade and North Korea, the U.S. president effused with praise for the Chinese leader following the two-day visit.

“My feeling toward you is an incredibly warm one,” Trump said, standing beside Xi during a press briefing Thursday. He added that there was “great chemistry” between the two leaders and that they would “do tremendous things, both for China and the United States.”

Trump has long been a critic of China’s trade surplus, but on Thursday he said he would no longer “blame” China for “taking advantage” of errors made by his predecessors in Washington, marking a significant shift in tone.

Here are some of the many ways Xi and Trump found common ground in Beijing this week:

• From the moment he landed in Beijing, Trump was impressed. He called his welcoming ceremony “a truly memorable and incredible display.”

• Trump and first lady Melania Trump then joined Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, for a private tour of the Forbidden City, a rare honor granted to very few overseas leaders. Trump was clearly impressed with the gold vases on display.

• Trump showed off his granddaughter as part of his diplomatic efforts. During a state dinner at the Forbidden City, Trump played a video of Arabella Kushner — the eldest child of Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner — singing a song in Chinese for “Grandpa Xi and Grandma Peng.”
• Trump has even replaced his Twitter cover picture with one of Xi and their wives in Beijing — despite the fact Twitter is officially banned in China.
• On North Korea, which had been a major bone of contention between the two leaders, there is now “no space between both of our objectives,” Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told reporters. He added that China had shared with the U.S. intelligence that shows international sanctions against Pyongyang are beginning to have an impact.
• The White House even kowtowed to China’s insistence that there should be no questions from the media following the press briefing — something recent presidents have ignored.

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• Trump and Xi also boasted about more than $250 billion in “deals” aimed at addressing the trade imbalance. However, the substance of these deals is still a little murky and includes nonbinding memoranda of understanding and deals that were already announced.
• The newfound kinship between the leaders was reflected in an editorial in the state-run Global Times newspaper, which called Trump “pragmatic,” adding that he is “one of the most popular heads of state on the Chinese internet and generally the Chinese public holds a positive attitude toward him.”
• The editorial even echoed Trump’s criticism of the mainstream U.S. media, saying it wrongly portrayed a negative view of the U.S. president saying they “cheated” the Chinese public and were now “discredited.”

Despite the warm, fuzzy feelings coming from Beijing Thursday, it is clear the two leaders are in very different situations.

Xi, who secured a second five-year term last month and holds an iron grip over the Middle Kingdom, is seeking to position China as the champion of free trade and globalization, while Trump, struggling for support both at home and abroad, is seeking an isolationist agenda.