By Jeff Mason and Trevor Hunnicutt
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that China’s “beautiful ceremony” marking the end of World War Two should have highlighted the role that the U.S. played in Japan’s defeat.
“I thought it was a beautiful ceremony. I thought it was very, very impressive,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, hours after he suggested on social media that foreign leaders meeting in Beijing might be conspiring against the U.S.
“I watched the speech last night. President Xi is a friend of mine, but I thought that the United States should have been mentioned last night during that speech, because we helped China very, very much.”
The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has made the 80th anniversary of the war’s end a major showcase for his government and its close ties with countries at odds with Washington.
Flanked by Russia’s Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, Xi spoke before a crowd of more than 50,000 spectators at Tiananmen Square. He surveyed a parade of goose-stepping troops and cutting-edge military equipment aimed at deterring would-be adversaries including the United States.
Japan’s invasion of China in 1937 was a major escalation in fighting that would lead to World War Two, and Japan’s surrender in 1945 marked the end of the conflict. The U.S. joined the war in 1941, aiding Chinese forces fighting the Japanese military and playing a decisive role in Japan’s defeat.
Deploying history to wage present-day political battles, Xi has cast World War Two as a major turning point in the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation” now ruled by his Chinese Communist Party, and its allies.
On Wednesday, Xi thanked “the foreign governments and international friends who supported and assisted the Chinese people,” according to an official. But he did not dwell on the role of the United States in the war.
U.S.-China relations are at a tense moment. The two sides are at odds on a range of security issues, from Ukraine to the South China Sea, and are wrangling over a broad trade deal to stave off tariffs on each other’s goods.
But Trump has repeatedly touted a positive personal relationship with Xi that his aides say can steer the world’s two largest economies in a constructive direction. He has also said he might soon meet with Xi.
In a post directed at Xi on Truth Social as the parade kicked off, Trump said, “Please give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against the United States of America.”
The Kremlin said they were not conspiring and suggested the remarks were ironic.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt, Jeff Mason and Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Caitlin Webber, Don Durfee and Nia Williams)
