‘They live that long?’ Trump exclaims as Xi shows him centuries-old trees during rare tour of Chinese garden
A hot mic captured the leaders' remarks, in which Trump expressed surprise that some of the trees were 1,000 years old.
After discussions on trade, Taiwan and Iran, Chinese President Xi Jinping walked with US President Donald Trump through Beijing’s walled-off Zhongnanhai compound, and showed him trees that he said were hundreds of years old.
A hot mic captured parts of the conversation between the two during the closing hours of their summit in Beijing.
“Let me tell you, all the trees on this side are over 200 to 300 years old,” Xi said through an interpreter, as he gestured towards some towering trunks. “Over there, there are some more than 400 years old.”
Trump replied, “They live that long?”
Xi then told Trump that, “there are also 1,000-year-old trees in other places.”
Zhongnanhai, a former imperial garden that now houses the offices of the ruling Communist Party and the state council, or China’s cabinet, is adjacent to the capital’s famed landmark of the Forbidden City and off Tiananmen Square.
Trump asked Xi if other foreign leaders were also received in the compound.
“Very rarely,” Xi replied. “At first, we usually didn’t hold diplomatic events here. Even after we started having some, it’s still extremely rare. For example, Putin has been here.”
Then he invited Trump to touch a 280-year-old tree.
“Good. I like it,” Trump replied.
The moment offered a rare glimpse of informal interactions between heads of states.
In September, a hot mic captured Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussing organ transplants and the possibility that humans could live to the age of 150, as they walked towards Tiananmen Square to watch Beijing’s military parade.
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After discussions on trade, Taiwan and Iran, Chinese President Xi Jinping walked with US President Donald Trump through Beijing’s walled-off Zhongnanhai compound, and showed him trees that he said were hundreds of years old.
A hot mic captured parts of the conversation between the two during the closing hours of their summit in Beijing.
“Let me tell you, all the trees on this side are over 200 to 300 years old,” Xi said through an interpreter, as he gestured towards some towering trunks. “Over there, there are some more than 400 years old.”
Trump replied, “They live that long?”
Xi then told Trump that, “there are also 1,000-year-old trees in other places.”
Zhongnanhai, a former imperial garden that now houses the offices of the ruling Communist Party and the state council, or China’s cabinet, is adjacent to the capital’s famed landmark of the Forbidden City and off Tiananmen Square.
Trump asked Xi if other foreign leaders were also received in the compound.
“Very rarely,” Xi replied. “At first, we usually didn’t hold diplomatic events here. Even after we started having some, it’s still extremely rare. For example, Putin has been here.”
Then he invited Trump to touch a 280-year-old tree.
“Good. I like it,” Trump replied.
The moment offered a rare glimpse of informal interactions between heads of states.
In September, a hot mic captured Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussing organ transplants and the possibility that humans could live to the age of 150, as they walked towards Tiananmen Square to watch Beijing’s military parade.
