'Health Concerns' Surround Xi Jinping as He Takes Unusual Break During U.S.-China Summit

[Financial News]  

Chinese President Xi Jinping, 73, who has been the subject of health concerns, unusually requested a break during his summit with U.S. President Donald Trump last month, creating an approximately five-hour gap in his visit schedule, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 2nd (local time).

The WSJ, citing sources, reported that the Chinese side asked the White House to prepare a private rest room for Xi in the West Wing. Only his wife, Peng Liyuan, was allowed to accompany him in the room. Other Chinese officials, including the chief of staff, were not permitted to access the 'waiting room.'
According to the report, a Chinese advance team asked the White House to cancel the working luncheon between the two countries' leaders, which had originally been scheduled for Sept. 24, a month before the visit.
Trump had earlier held a working luncheon at Zhongnanhai, known as the heart of China's political power, during his visit to Beijing in May.
Dennis Wilder, former senior director for China at the National Security Council (NSC), who oversaw three state visits during the George W. Bush administration, said there was no precedent for a foreign leader requesting a private rest room.

The Chinese side scheduled no events for the evening of Xi's arrival. On Sept. 25, the final day of the visit, he reportedly spent only about 10 minutes at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), far less time than the U.S. side had originally planned.
The WSJ reported that Xi's movements during his visit to the United States also appeared more cautious than usual. When he disembarked from his plane, he held Peng's hand with one hand and gripped a handrail with the other. Two days later, he appeared to rely on Peng as he held her hand while climbing the steps at NARA.
Chinese state-run media reportedly deleted the footage of these scenes before reporting on them.
Reports questioning Xi Jinping's health have continued to emerge recently.
At the BRICS summit in India last month, he reportedly skipped a dinner attended by leaders of major countries, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, because he was not feeling well.
Wilder, the former NSC senior director, said the U.S.-China summit began around noon on Sept. 24 and ended in the early afternoon, noting, "It was far too short for a summit between the leaders of the world's two largest economies."

Experts warned that health concerns surrounding Xi could have repercussions for China's future political situation, as power is excessively concentrated in him and no successor has been designated.
Minxin Pei, a professor of political science at Claremont McKenna College, said that if a leader becomes completely incapacitated, the party must immediately find a successor. However, if the leader has physical limitations but remains mentally functional, a state of limbo without policy changes would continue, as it did during the final years of Mao Zedong's rule.

[email protected] Song Kyung-jae Reporter