As he prepares for his historic meeting with Kim Jong Un, Donald Trump is looking for his “Nixon in China” moment — the chance for rapprochement with a sworn enemy that leads to momentous geopolitical change.
And just as Richard Nixon’s meeting with Mao Zedong in 1972 was all about countering the Soviet Union, the current US president’s meeting with Mr Kim is all about China.
The people who will be most upset by news of Mr Trump’s visit to North Korea will be President Xi Jinping and the mandarins in Beijing. Until now, Mr Xi has managed to play the role of concerned uncle trying hard to rein in a recalcitrant child, all while doing almost nothing.