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American leader visits overseas have traditionally been an occasion to showcase the power of the United States on the global scene. Donald Trump's multi-day trip through eastern Asia, by contrast, has been a show of the clout of the leader – but also, at points, of that influence's constraints.

The president's stops in Malaysia, Japan and South Korea over the duration of the first four days were an display in pleasing a occasionally volatile American president. It was an acknowledgement that Trump, with the flick of a document, could introduce tariffs and other measures that have the potential to harm the markets of export-dependent states.

His meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday, however, was something entirely different.

It was a encounter of equals on the global stage, where the consequences for the two powers – for their economies, for their world reputation, for the well-being of their populations – were significant.

With Beijing, the president may flick his power, but these moves come with consequences. They come with a toll.

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For the opening segment, the president's latest entry into world politics was successful.

Each stop was characterized by a combination of traditional commercial discussions – deals made under the shadow of Trump's "equivalent" duties – and special treatment that at moments verged on the deferential.

In Malaysia, the president obtained rights to essential resources and made progress toward finalizing trade arrangements with south-east Asian nations. He also oversaw a agreement that should ease frontier issues between Thailand and Cambodia – the type of "peace deal" the president prefers to highlight.

In Japan, Trump's official aircraft passed by a famous structure illuminated US flag colors – with a peak in gilded.

Newly elected Head Sanai Takaichi described $550 billion in Japan's financial commitments in the US and gave the president a gift of a quarter-thousand flowering trees for America's 250th birthday, and a golf club and carrier that was owned by Shinzo Abe, the murdered past head who connected with Trump in his first term.

She also became the newest foreign leader to nominate the president for his highly-coveted international honor.

Not to be outdone, South Korea greeted the president with cannons performing a honor salute and a military band that performed the leader's song and the Village People song – the band anthem that has turned into a presidential event anthem.

President Lee Jae Myung held an "recognition ritual" for Trump during which he awarded the American leader his state's premier award and a copy of an historical royal headpiece.

Midday meal with the Korean leader included a "Conciliatory Treat" of gold-covered baked goods. Subsequently, the South Koreans provided Trump vineyard wine at an private meal in the president's honor with half-dozen international heads attending the regional summit meeting.

In the America, the president may be the subject of "Anti-Monarchy" protests by Americans who oppose his authority-expanding extensions of presidential power, but during his regional visit he was treated like monarchy.

And like the rulers of ancient times, the president arrived in Korea requesting tribute – in the form of $200 billion in cash payments, $twenty billion a year, from Korea to the United States, to be invested at the discretion of Trump's leadership. Agreement on the details of those contributions helped ensure that the tax percentage on South Korean exports to the US would drop from twenty-five percent to under twenty percent.

The central moment of Trump's Asian tour took place in its final hours, however, as he sat down with the Chinese leader.

In that setting, the power dynamic between heads of the world's two largest economies was noticeably distinct than the exchanges the president had with his overseas colleagues in previous days.

Not present were the usual ceremony and the pageantry. Without any service ensembles, absent honour guards, no meticulously designed menus honoring shared goodwill. By contrast, the two leaders and their key staff sat across a large pale meeting furniture in a nondescript armed forces facility just adjacent to the landing strip of Busan's international airport.

It was possibly a reflection of the major consequences that when the president made contact with the Chinese leader in the southern port, he appeared