Biden, Xi, Henry VIII and All That Glitters
Some summits are casual. Others are opulent. But to be worthwhile, they’ve got to deliver.
Xi Jinping and Joe Biden in San Francisco
Photographer: Brendan Smialowski/AFP
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As meetings between great powers go, Xi Jinping and Joe Biden’s San Francisco huddle was no Field of the Cloth of Gold. That summit of the young kings of England and France occurred more than 500 years ago, when Henry VIII and Francis I — 29 and 25 years old, respectively — were the rising political personalities — and egos — of early 16th-century Europe. The opulence of their two-week get-together just south of English-held Calais reflected that: so much fabric of spun gold was used in the tents and drapery of both contingents that the convocation is known by the textile. But there was skin in the game, too: As part of the diplomatic show, the kings tussled in a wrestling match.