Chinese security personnel and US Secret Service agents were involved in tense confrontations during Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing this week, according to reporters traveling with the White House press pool. The most serious incident reportedly occurred on Thursday at Beijing’s Temple of Heaven, where Chinese officials allegedly blocked an armed US Secret Service agent from entering the venue during Trump’s bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
According to reporters on the ground, the disagreement led to an “intense standoff” between US and Chinese officials, delaying access to the event site for more than 30 minutes. Another report from the White House press pool said the discussions stretched close to an hour and a half before both sides reached a compromise.
“We’ve seen several intense confrontations since being here,” a Telegraph correspondent wrote on X.
Journalists accompanying the president also reportedly faced difficulties moving between locations during Trump’s state visit.
According to the Telegraph correspondent, Chinese officials repeatedly attempted to stop American reporters and White House staff from leaving designated positions and joining the presidential motorcade.
The incidents unfolded during Trump’s two-day visit to China, where he held high-level discussions with Xi on trade, Iran, energy security, fentanyl controls and the strategically important Strait of Hormuz.
Chinese officials also reportedly warned Trump over the US stance on Taiwan during the bilateral talks.
The latest tensions revived memories of a similar confrontation during Trump’s 2017 visit to China involving the so-called “nuclear football,” the briefcase that allows the US president to authorize a nuclear strike.
At the time, reports claimed Chinese security blocked a US military aide carrying the briefcase from entering the Great Hall of the People. Axios reported that then-White House Chief of Staff John Kelly intervened and a physical altercation briefly broke out between US and Chinese officials.
The Secret Service later denied reports that a Chinese official had been tackled, though a Fox News source acknowledged there had been “a bit of shoving” before tensions de-escalated.
Source: India Latest News, Breaking News Today, Top News Headlines | Times Now
