Peng Liyuan "highly praises the return of cultural assets from the U.S."... “First lady exchanges raise the level of state visits”
(Washington, Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Lee Yu-mi and Correspondent Kwon Sook-hee = On the 24th (local time), when U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a summit meeting, the two leaders' spouses, First Lady Melania Trump and First Lady Peng Liyuan, also attended a separate meeting.
After attending a welcome event held at the White House this morning, the two first ladies visited the Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art in Washington, D.C. and toured the 'Peacock Room', where Chinese blue-and-white porcelain and other items were on display.
On the wall of the Peacock Room, decorated in gold, blue, and green with a peacock motif, is a painting by American painter James McNeil Whistler depicting two peacocks fighting each other, symbolizing the clash between 'art and money'.
The two first ladies admired Whistler's work, "The Princess from the Land of Porcelain," which depicts a woman in a kimono holding a fan. Asian Museum Director Chase Robinson and Deputy Director of Collections and Exhibitions Daniel Bennett explained the work.
First Lady Melania Trump was impressed by the exhibits, saying they were "beautiful and surprising," according to the White House press corps.
China's official Xinhua News Agency reported that Ms. Peng highly praised the United States for returning Chinese cultural properties to China on several occasions in recent years, and expressed hope that the U.S. and China will continue to strengthen cultural exchanges and cooperation in protecting cultural heritage to promote friendship between the two peoples.
The museum, which houses approximately 46,000 artifacts and works, has participated in the effort to return to their countries of origin any artifacts that have been stolen or obtained through unethical means.
The two first ladies then met with local students waiting on the steps at the entrance to the museum.
About 36 students aged 8 to 15 at Hope Chinese School, a Chinese language education institution in the Washington, D.C. area, wore blue and white clothes, waved the flags of the two countries, and sang two songs. One of them was sung in Chinese and English.
The Associated Press reported that the students sang the famous Chinese song 'Song and Smile' and the Chinese folk song 'Morihua'. ‘Morihua’ is also famous as the song Ms. Feng sang when she was a ‘national singer’ before marrying President Xi.
First Lady Melania Smiled, clapped her hands and shouted "Bravo" at the end of each song, and Ms. Feng also sang along with the children and smiled brightly.
After the performance, the two talked briefly with the students and took a commemorative photo together.
At this time, Ms. Feng encouraged the students to continue to study Chinese language and culture diligently and become ambassadors of friendship between the United States and China, Xinhua News Agency reported.
On this day, First Lady Melania wore a black tweed jacket and skirt, and Mrs. Feng wore a dark blue dress with a design reminiscent of the traditional Chinese cheongsam.
The two plan to have tea with the two leaders in the White House Red Room on the 25th and then visit the National Archives and Records Administration, where the U.S. Declaration of Independence and other documents are stored.
It has been about 9 years since the two met in public.
We met in 2017 when U.S. President Donald Trump visited Beijing during his first term in office. At that time, they drank tea in the Forbidden City and visited a local school.
First Lady Melania Trump did not accompany President Trump during his visit to China in May of this year.
Sun Yun, a researcher at the Stimson Center, an American think tank, told AP that the exchange between the two first ladies adds to the status and symbolism of the state visit.
