From Obama’s evening chats on Yingtai island in the grounds of Zhongnanhai to Trump’s tea reception in the Forbidden City, historic settings have long formed a symbolic backdrop to key moments in US-China diplomacy.
As Trump prepares for his visit to China from Wednesday to Friday – the first by an American president in almost nine years – all eyes will not only be on the summit agenda, but also on the carefully choreographed details surrounding the reception, including sites featured in the itinerary.
The focus is expected to fall on the Temple of Heaven Unesco World Heritage site, a centuries-old imperial complex associated with ritual, cosmic order and political authority.
Trump is expected to arrive in Beijing on Wednesday evening before taking part in a welcome ceremony and a bilateral meeting with Xi the following morning, according to US principal deputy press secretary Anna Kelly on Sunday. She said the two leaders would then tour the Temple of Heaven and attend a state banquet.
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Kelly said Xi and Trump would meet again on Friday for tea and a working lunch.
The Temple of Heaven, or Tiantan Park, is a religious complex dating to the 15th century, symbolising the relationship between earth and heaven, a concept central to traditional Chinese cosmology.
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It was used by emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties as a sacred site to offer sacrifices to heaven and pray for a good harvest, while reinforcing the emperor’s role as an intermediary between heavenly order and earthly governance.