Chinese state media welcome meeting between Presidents Xi and Trump, North Korea issue

Chinese state media on Saturday warmly welcomed the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping as confirmation that confrontation between the two powers is not inevitable, Patria reports.

China's largest daily newspaper, China Daily, writes that it is encouraging to see that the two-day summit, which concluded on Friday, "went as well as it could have," especially given earlier "confusing signals" from Washington regarding its stance on the relationship between the two countries, Reuters writes.

The meeting at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida passed without diplomatic gaffes, to which the Chinese side, highly oriented towards protocol, is particularly sensitive.

China Daily states that both sides were "equally enthusiastic about the constructive relationship they pledged to nurture.".

The state tabloid Global Times writes that the meeting is "an indicator of a good path for Sino-American relations after the Trump administration took office in January," and that there is a possibility that the two nations will develop a "more pragmatic relationship.".

Wang Dong, an associate professor in the International Studies program at China's elite Peking University, commented that Trump likely sees the meeting as a message to North Korea regarding its nuclear program, but that this will not confuse China.

"The differences between the situation in Syria and the situation on the Korean Peninsula are huge," Wang explained, pointing to North Korea's military capacity to strike South Korea in the event of US military intervention. "Any use of force or preemptive strikes against North Korea would have enormous consequences, likely leading to a completely opposite outcome than in Syria," Wang added.

Reuters also writes that during the two-day talks, Trump sought to persuade Xi to make greater efforts to halt the development of North Korea's nuclear program. The two reached an agreement on a 100-day plan for trade aimed at boosting US exports and reducing the US trade deficit with China.

American industry had hoped the president would send a strong message behind closed doors regarding discriminatory trade policies, but not so strong as to trigger a trade war, Reuters writes.