Chinese President Xi Jinping took a not-too-subtle dig at Donald Trump and the U.S. while meeting with Vladimir Putin in Beijing.
In his second high-profile summit in a matter of days, Xi welcomed the Russian leader to the Great Hall of the People on Wednesday, not long after receiving Trump in the same historic building.
During the meeting, Xi praised the ties between China and Russia as “calm amid chaos” on the world stage while also taking a thinly veiled jab at the turbulence the Trump presidency has caused on issues such as Iran and his sweeping tariffs.
“The international situation is marked by intertwined turbulence and transformation, while unilateral hegemonic currents are running rampant,” Xi said. As noted by CNN, the remarks echo language commonly used by Beijing to criticize what China sees as excessive U.S. dominance in foreign policy.
Xi added that because of the chaos across the world, China and Russia must strengthen their “comprehensive strategic coordination.”
The comments were also similar to a joint statement issued by Beijing and the Kremlin, which warned of the danger of the “fragmentation” of the international community and a return to the “law of the jungle.”
“Attempts by a number of states to unilaterally manage global affairs, impose their interests on the entire world, and limit the sovereign development of other countries, in the spirit of the colonial era, have failed,” China and Russia said, without naming the U.S. directly.
Just like Trump’s visit to China last week for the crucial summit, Xi welcomed Putin with a red carpet and an honor guard parade as the leaders walked to the Great Hall of the People.
Unlike Trump, Putin is only due to stay in Beijing for one day, and will not enjoy some of the niceties the U.S. president was offered, such as a tour of the gardens of Zhongnanhai, an old imperial garden that is now a walled-off compound used by China’s ruling Communist Party.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that comparing and contrasting the pomp surrounding Putin’s and Trump’s visits to Beijing was largely meaningless.
“It is not always easy to compare the content as not everything is shown on the surface. However, the main value lies in the content, not in the ceremonial aspects,” Peskov told Russian state television, via Reuters.
Putin’s whistlestop tour of Beijing is also more of a common occurrence. Wednesday’s visit marks the 25th official trip to China by the Russian leader.
In comparison, Trump’s Beijing summit was the first time a U.S. president had visited China since Trump last went in 2017.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
