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Speaking on Thursday in the China-US presidential summit state banquet held in the Great Hall of the People's impressive banquet hall, president Trump thanked president Xi for what he described as a "magnificent welcome". In a speech that was filled with facts, Trump talked about the relationship between the American and Chinese people all the way back to America's founding days. 

Trump said that "From the beginning, our citizens have shared a deep sense of mutual respect. Founding Father Benjamin Franklin published the sayings of Confucius in his colonial newspaper and today's sculpture, recognizing that ancient Chinese sage is carved into the face of the United States Supreme Court very proudly ...........The appreciation ran in both directions. Chinese admirers of president George Washington gifted a stone tablet honouring his memory to adorn the Washington monument. It bears the words of a Chinese official who called the great general and statesman a hero among men .................Across the centuries, this mutual esteem grew into a relationship that reflected the tremendous talent and potential of our two people. Chinese workers helped lay the railroad tracks that connected our Atlantic Coast to the Pacific. American travellers to China helped spread literacy and modern medicine. And at the request of China's ambassador, it was President Theodore Roosevelt who provided the funds to establish President Xi's alma mater, Tsinghua University. "

In the first visit by a US president since 2017, the world has undergone tremendous changes. China in particular has reformed and transformed by leaps and bounds. Just ask anyone who goes to China after 9 long years.