I found the body language in the pool pics of Anthony Blinken meeting Xi this morning interesting.
Ol’ Xi seems to be going out of his way to make sure the world knows that he’s not thrilled to be finally meeting our secretary of state after the previous appointment was canceled over the spy balloon.
The one above is like, “OK, well, they told me I have to do this thing, so I’m doing it. Whatever…”
And I especially like the one below, evidently taken moments before by the pool photographer: Blinken eagerly striding over with his hand out, and Xi standing like his feet are nailed to the floor and he’s saying, “Yeah, OK, you can shake my hand if you must, but you’ve gotta come over to me, foreign devil…”
So, you know, no warmer relations yet, anyway…
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A case of not seeing the forest for the trees:
What’s important in this picture isn’t body language — at best a very inexact “science.”
It’s the fact that Blinken is meeting with Xi at all.
It wasn’t certain he woud be received. And, what’s more, this is the first visit by the top US diplomat in FIVE years.
That’s what’s important.
Yes, that’s what’s important. Like, you know, if we want to state the obvious…