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Chinese President Xi Jinping wanted to show the warm side of his personality and project a reassuring attitude as he visited Xixi National Wetland Park in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, on March 31. (Colors enhanced to highlight Xi by Nikkei)   © AP/ Xinhua
China up close

Xi sends coded message to closest aides through Zhejiang trip

President rallies his troops as China navigates stormy waters

KATSUJI NAKAZAWA, Nikkei senior staff writer | China

TOKYO -- If China had acted more quickly to contain the novel coronavirus and had prevented millions of its citizens from traveling abroad in January, President Xi Jinping would have been busy preparing for his first state visit to Japan around this time.

He had promised to visit when the country's much-loved cherry blossoms were out. Instead, COVID-19 is raging the world over and not only has Xi's visit been postponed but so have the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. This was not the way history was supposed to have been written.

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