President Trump arrived Wednesday night in Beijing, where he was welcomed by a military band, an honor guard, hundreds of Chinese youth waving flags and China’s vice president, Han Zheng.

特朗普总统周三晚抵达北京，迎接他的是军乐队、仪仗队、数百名挥舞两国国旗的中国年轻人，以及中国国家副主席韩正。

Such carefully designed receptions for foreign leaders telegraph Beijing’s attitude toward these visits. Sometimes Beijing sends a lower-level official to convey displeasure or distance. Sometimes they send someone senior and influential to signal a high degree of respect.

北京为外国领导人精心安排的迎接仪式历来是其对待此类访问态度的晴雨表。有时，北京会派级别较低的官员出面，以示不满或保持距离；有时则会安排位高权重的人物，以示高度重视。

This time, they sent someone who is high-level but whose position is mostly that of a figurehead — which could be a way to send a layered message.

而这一次，他们派出的是一位级别很高，但职位更多带有礼仪性质的人物——这或许是传递多层信息的一种方式。

“Beijing sent Han Zheng to Trump’s inauguration and knows that his title of vice president, even though it is a ceremonial role, will impress the status-conscious American president,” said Julian Gewirtz, a China historian at Columbia University who served in senior China policy roles in the National Security Council under President Biden.

“北京曾派韩正出席了特朗普的就职典礼，并且知道国家副主席这个头衔尽管是礼仪性职务，但会让这位重视身份地位的美国总统感到受用，”哥伦比亚大学的中国历史学者朱利安·格维茨表示。他曾在拜登总统任内的国家安全委员会担任负责中国政策的高级职务。

“It’s an example of how, throughout this summit, China is hoping to trade symbolism for substance — using protocol and Trump’s preference for pageantry to hold off a return to economic escalation and buy time for China,” he said.

他说：“这体现了中国在整个峰会期间的一种策略：希望用象征意义换取实质内容——利用礼宾安排以及特朗普对盛大场面的偏好来避免中美关系重新升级为经济对抗，并为中国争取时间。”

In his role as vice president, Mr. Han is often sent to formal diplomatic events, such as the coronation ceremony in Britain of King Charles III or Mr. Trump’s second inauguration as president. But Mr. Han, who stepped down from the elite Politburo Standing Committee, the apex of power in China’s ruling Communist Party, now has little influence over policymaking.

作为国家副主席，韩正经常被派往出席正式的外交活动，例如英国国王查尔斯三世的加冕典礼，或特朗普的第二次总统就职仪式。但韩正已从中共权力最高层的政治局常委位置上退下，如今对政策制定几乎没有什么影响力。

The choice of Mr. Han could also signal how Beijing is approaching a visit by the leader of the most powerful country in the world, but who now faces a more defiant and assertive Beijing. It would suggest that Mr. Trump could be feted with the honors of a formal state visit but not given special treatment beyond that of any other power in the world.

选择韩正或许也折射出北京对待这位来访者的态度——他固然是世界上最强大国家的领导人，但他所面对的，已是一个更加不服输、更自信的北京。这意味着，特朗普将享有正式国事访问的礼遇，但不会获得有别于世界其他大国领导人的特殊款待。

“In Chinese diplomacy, protocol is substance, especially during a state visit,” said Evan Medeiros, a professor of Asian studies at Georgetown University who served as an Asia adviser to President Barack Obama. “The arrival ceremony is the first threshold in the protocol game; it is how China signals respect.”

“在中国外交中，礼宾程序本身就是实质内容，在国事访问期间尤为如此，”曾任奥巴马总统亚洲事务顾问、乔治城大学亚洲研究教授麦艾文(Evan Medeiros)说，“抵达仪式是礼宾博弈的第一道门槛，是中国传递尊重信号的方式。”

Mr. Han’s presence is a slight downgrade from the welcome Mr. Trump received in 2017, some analysts say. During that state visit, Mr. Trump was greeted by Yang Jiechi, China’s top diplomat and a member of the Politburo, the party’s second-most powerful body. At the time, Xinhua, China’s official news agency, described the presence of such a “heavyweight” as a sign of “the importance China attaches to the meeting” between the two leaders.

一些分析人士表示，与特朗普2017年访华时相比，这次韩正出面迎接，其规格实际上是略有下降的。在2017年的国事访问期间，迎接特朗普的是中国最高外交官杨洁篪，他同时还是中共中央政治局委员，这是中共第二高权力机构。中国官方通讯社新华社在当时称，这一“重量级”安排“凸显的是中方对中美元首北京会晤的重视”。

“If they sent someone who is a Politburo member, it means they really think this is so important and you are our most important guest,” said Wei-Feng Tzeng, an associate research fellow at National Chengchi University in Taipei who has researched Chinese diplomatic protocol.

“如果派来的是政治局委员，意味着中方真的认为这次访问极为重要，你是我们最尊贵的客人，”研究中国外交礼规的台北国立政治大学副研究员曾伟峰说。

Still, U.S. presidents have recently enjoyed higher-level airport greeters than have leaders of other countries considered closer to Beijing. During a state visit in 2024, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia was received by the state councilor Shen Yiqin, whose position is lower than Mr. Han’s.

不过，近年来美国总统的接机规格实际上仍高于一些被认为与北京关系更密切国家的领导人。例如，2024年俄罗斯总统普京对中国进行国事访问时，迎接他的是国务委员谌贻琴，级别低于韩正。

China has made these subtle changes in reception before. In 2014, President Obama visited Beijing amid his “pivot” to Asia, which involved shoring up alliances in the region to constrain a more-assertive China. He was treated to a more standard protocol of a ministry-level official: the head of China’s foreign ministry, Wang Yi.

中国此前也曾在接待规格上做出过这种微妙调整。2014年，奥巴马总统在推行“重返亚洲”战略背景下访问北京——该战略旨在 巩固美国在亚洲的盟友，以制衡日趋强硬的中国。那次，中方给予奥巴马的是更标准化的礼宾安排——由部长级官员、中国外长王毅接机。

Compare that to 2009, when Mr. Obama became the first U.S. president to visit China during his first year in office. He was greeted by Xi Jinping himself, who was also vice president but a member of the Politburo Standing Committee. At the time, he was already seen as the likely successor to Hu Jintao as China’s leader.

相比之下，2009年奥巴马成为首位在上任第一年就访华的美国总统。当时迎接他的是习近平本人——习近平时任国家副主席，同时也是政治局常委。那时他已被外界普遍视为胡锦涛的接班人。