【Detail: The U.S. Ambassador to China was positioned ahead of Rubio】
This visit by Trump to China has drawn attention to a particular detail: in the arrangement of positions and seating for the Trump team, U.S. Ambassador to China Perkins was placed first, especially evident in the positioning outside the Great Hall of the People, where Perkins stood directly in front of Rubio. According to photos released by CCTV showing the summit venue, Perkins and Rubio were seated on either side of Trump. In the U.S. administrative system, the Ambassador to China is actually subordinate to the Secretary of State, making such an arrangement exceptionally rare in the past.
Various sectors have attempted to understand the reason behind this arrangement. Overall, there may be three key factors: First, as a bilateral summit hosted in Beijing, the U.S. Ambassador to China holds a unique status. Perkins’s prominent position might reflect his responsibility for coordinating certain practical matters on-site.
Second, this special arrangement may signal something significant: during this summit, the U.S. Embassy in China played a more crucial role than the U.S. Department of State in coordination efforts.
Third, seating does not necessarily equate to rank—it reflects issue-specific division of labor and protocol design. Although, by institutional standards, Rubio as Secretary of State should technically outrank ambassadors abroad and thus be positioned further forward, Trump has always been known for deviating from convention. Placing Perkins, the Ambassador to China, in such a prominent position underscores Trump’s high level of focus on this visit, aiming for breakthrough progress across multiple issues.
The Taiwan United Daily News stated: Although the U.S. Ambassador to China is administratively under the Department of State, within the broader system of U.S. overseas ambassadors, he holds an unparalleled status and can communicate directly with the White House.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1865158116017163/
Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of its author