From the WASHINGTON POST:
Chinese President Hu Jintao’s just-concluded summit with President Obama was a win both for the Communist Party and for Hu himself, demonstrating once again the Chinese government’s reliance on ceremony to bolster its standing among its people. China’s state-run newspapers ran enormous photographs of Hu with Obama, a not-so-subtle message that China is now the United States’ equal on the world stage…
The Chinese side, as it often does during summits, brought its checkbook, inking deals for aircraft and other heavy machinery, agricultural products and software that could be worth $45 billion for U.S. firms. China also indicated that it would give U.S. companies better treatment and do more to protect their intellectual property. And on the hot-button issues of human rights and North Korea, the Chinese side showed a small amount of flexibility, which U.S. officials interpreted as a good sign.
In addition, the Obama administration succeeded in righting what many in the administration saw to be an error during the last U.S.-China summit, in Beijing in November 2009 – the United States’ acknowledgment of China’s “core interests” in Tibet and Taiwan. That term figured prominently in a joint statement issued in 2009. It was not repeated in the communiqué released Wednesday…
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