The World

By Edward Luce, FT Washington bureau chief, travelling with President Barack Obama in Shanghai

From a distance, global diplomacy can appear more glamourous than it sometimes is. On Monday, in a very rainy and overcast Shanghai, Barack Obama could be forgiven for wishing he was elsewhere. His first public event of the day was a meeting with Yu Zhengsheng, the city’s Communist party secretary.

After the presidential motorcade sped along Shanghai’s eerily empty streets and seemingly endless urban jungle of skyscrapers, Mr Obama sat down to what might politely be described as a ponderous exchange of pleasantries with Mr Yu.

The US president was not alone. Among the other American officials seated in a line of chairs next to Mr Obama were Hillary Clinton, the secretary of state, Susan Rice, the ambassador to the United Nations, Jim Jones, the national security advisor, Lawrence Summers, White House senior economic advisor, and Kurt Campbell, the state department’s Asia man.

“Thank you so much for your hospitality,” said Mr Obama. “This is my first visit to Shanghai.”

“Shanghai is a city that witnessed the progress of the diplomatic relations between China and the United States over the past three decades,” Mr Yu shot back.

Mr Obama: “…It is very impressive to travel through the city and see what extraordinary progress has been made.”

Mr Yu: “Shanghai citizens are very pleased because Shanghai is the first stop of your visit.”

Mr Obama: “Well thank you.”

And so on, in a display of diplomatic ping-pong that had one or two of Mr Obama’s officials struggling to keep awake. Doubtless more detailed exchanges took place behind closed doors after the FT and others had been ushered out of the room. Oh to have been a fly on the wall!