NewsUS NewsDonald TrumpThe world's two most powerful leaders flew to Beijing and left having given Xi Jinping exactly what he wanted - proof that the centre of global power has shifted, and it isn't Washington.10:11, 20 May 2026Updated 10:11, 20 May 2026Donald Trump arrived in Beijing as the world's self-appointed ultimate dealmaker. Vladimir Putin arrived days later, looking like a man returning to an old strategic ally.‌By the time both visits were over, the contrast could hardly have been more uncomfortable for the US president. Even the handshakes told the story. Putin greeted Xi Jinping with the confidence of a leader who knew exactly where he stood. Firm grip. Relaxed smiles. Shoulder-to-shoulder optics carefully crafted between two men who increasingly see themselves as architects of a new world order. Two seasoned operators quietly discussing how to redraw the geopolitical map.‌Trump's handshake felt altogether different. The self-styled alpha male bounded forward, grinning like a football fan who had somehow won a VIP pass to meet his idol. At times, he looked less like the leader of the free world and more like someone praying Xi might ask him to stay for a Chow Mein afterwards.‌READ MORE: NATO fighter jets chase drone as European airport shuts amid air raid alertREAD MORE: Vladimir Putin 'can barely walk' as he arrives to meet Xi Jinping with 'pained shuffle'There was something almost painfully comic in watching Trump attempt to dominate the Beijing stage. This is a man who has spent decades branding himself as history's greatest negotiator. Yet next to Xi he resembled an estate agent trying too hard to impress the owner of a £50 million mansion while nervously laughing at jokes nobody else found funny.‌Xi, meanwhile, barely broke sweat. While Western politics churns endlessly through elections, scandals and personality cults, he projects permanence. Stability. Patience.Leaders, including our own, now travel to Beijing seeking reassurance, trade, and strategic alignment, just as they once flocked almost exclusively to Washington. That shift matters enormously. Within days, both the President of the United States and the President of Russia made that journey, each seeking something from the same man.Xi sat at the centre of both encounters like a geopolitical headmaster receiving two very different pupils - one polished and prepared, the other loudly insisting he understood the assignment while clearly bluffing his way through it.‌Putin's visit was partly theatre, yet theatre matters in politics because it signals strength and momentum. Despite Russia's mounting battlefield problems in Ukraine, Putin arrived secure in one crucial reality: China still sees Russia as strategically useful.Trump's visit exposed something far more uncomfortable for Washington. America still possesses huge military and economic power, but its ability to dictate outcomes is fading.Article continues belowEven Trump, who built an entire political identity around dominance and dealmaking, looked strangely diminished standing beside Xi, like a casino boss trying to bluff at a poker table while the real power quietly counts the chips.The Kremlin insists observers should focus on "content" rather than ceremony. On that point, at least, they are absolutely right. Because the content of these two visits revealed something profound. Xi Jinping no longer looks like a participant in the geopolitical order. He increasingly looks like the man sitting at its centre.Christopher BucktinChristopher Bucktin is an award-winning journalist with more than 25 years of experience. A former Press Gazette Reporter of the Year, he has held senior roles including Head of Content, before relocating to the United States in 2013 to become US Editor. With a track record for breaking agenda-setting exclusives, he has reported from the front lines of America’s biggest news stories, led investigations into the Trump administration and the Jeffrey Epstein case. He holds weekly columns in the Daily Mirror, Daily Star and Reach's regional titles.Choose Daily Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.‌Xi JinpingDonald TrumpVladimir PutinThe ApprenticePoker