Red carpet vs empty tarmac: Xi’s US welcome fuels debate over Takaichi’s no-show reception
Por Fan Chen — South China Morning Post – News feed
Advertisement 2026 Xi-Trump summits China Diplomacy Red carpet vs empty tarmac: Xi’s US welcome fuels debate over Takaichi’s no-show reception
Online comparisons of the two leaders’ arrivals in the US this week have raised questions over how Washington treats its Tokyo ally
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Fan Chen Published: 8:20pm, 24 Sep 2026
Starkly contrasting receptions for the Japanese leader and the Chinese president in the United States have sparked debate over Washington’s treatment of Tokyo as an ally.
Sanae Takaichi arrived in New York at the start of the working week, beginning a trip where she addressed the United Nations General Assembly for the first time as the country’s prime minister.
A photo taken on her arrival shows her waving across a relatively empty tarmac at John F. Kennedy International Airport. Footage released by the Japanese prime minister’s office on Tuesday showed Takaichi being greeted by several Japanese officials, with no senior US representatives present.
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