Donald Trump lands in China, pushing 'Indo-Pacific' idea to wary hosts

As United States President Donald Trump arrived in Beijing on Wednesday to a grand reception, his government has stepped up its backing of a broader "Indo-Pacific" approach to Asia amid a wary response from China.

After disembarking from Air Force One, an elaborate motorcade, led by Chinese police in formation on motorbikes, swept through cleared Beijing streets to the Forbidden City, where Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan waited to receive Trump and First Lady Melania--all part of what Chinese officials are calling a "state visit-plus" red carpet on a scale never before seen.

Xi also hosted Trump for an opera performance and dinner at a historic pavilion inside the Forbidden City, which Chinese media said was another first for a foreign leader.

Beyond the red carpet, the visit has also underlined tensions between the two countries, from North Korea and trade to the Trump administration's Asia policy.

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Chinese media and analysts have warily reacted to the administration emphasising a "free and open Indo-Pacific" region as a focus of its Asia policy, viewing it as implicitly criticising China's rise and endorsing its view of India as a player in a region China considers its backyard.

In an interview broadcast on Wednesday, Chinese State broadcaster China Global Television asked National Security Adviser General (retd) H R McMaster why the administration repeatedly used the term "Indo-Pacific" instead of "Asia Pacific".

"If you just look at the geography and trade routes, the trade flows east and west across the Indo-Pacific region," McMaster said.

"As you can see, it is a region more and more integrated economically. It makes sense in terms of the construct to look at it as a regional perspective. There are other ways to look at it, as the Eurasian landmass and so forth, because of this trip, because the president will be engaging leaders across the Indo-Pacific region, it is a useful construct."

CENTRAL SPACE FOR US-CHINA TIES

In the interview, he highlighted North Korea as a priority area for the administration. The issue has come to occupy a central space in US-China ties, with Trump indicating he will ask Beijing to do more to pressure its ally, for instance by clamping down on continuing trade. "I think that's a sense shared by everyone that time is running out," McMaster said.

China, he added, "is in a very influential position especially economically". "The president particularly appreciated president Xi's support for the new UN sanctions and the work China is doing to enforce those sanctions. We think that, all of us think, this is our best chance to resolve this problem short of war.

He also highlighted more close cooperation on the terror front. "Now with the ISIS about to be defeated, Daesh about to be defeated. Iraq and Syria for example losing their safe haven and support base... we have an opportunity to improve our intelligence sharing, our law enforcement efforts, our counter terrorism financing efforts. And so these are just some of the many areas where US interests and Chinese interests are very much aligned and will allow us to work even more closely together."

MANAGE DIFFERENCES, RESOLVE DISPUTES

China's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday reacted coolly to the Trump administration's "Indo-Pacific" reference, with spokesperson Hua Chunying saying "we have indeed noted that recently this concept has been mentioned many times".

Responding to how China viewed the idea, Hua responded carefully, declining to use the term. "We hope that the Asia-Pacific region", she said, "can become a stable, prosperous and orderly region where consensus can be reached through consultation and where we are capable of managing differences and have the wisdom to resolve the disputes."

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