Does Xi Jinping trust Trump enough to get on a plane and seal trade deal?

Chinese officials have long been wary of putting Xi in a position where he might be embarrassed by an unpredictable Trump or forced into last-minute concessions

Donald Trump regularly touts the strength of his personal relationship with Xi Jinping, talking about the Chinese leader in the sort of warm terms US presidents normally reserve for longstanding allies.

Yet as the world’s two largest economies inch towards a trade agreement designed to define and reorder their economic relationship for years to come, one question looms large: Does Xi trust Trump enough to get on a plane and seal the deal?

Trump and his aides have for weeks been pushing for Xi to agree to a meeting at Mar-a-Lago, the president’s club and resort in Palm Beach, Florida, to finalize