CL Beijing today defended the integrity of Hong Kong's courts and said nothing about Jimmy Lai, whose trial has occupied those same courts for years. The statement and the silence it contains arrived together, as they often do. Most people in this city have long known which one requires more careful reading.-- CL

MB Trump arrives in Beijing carrying more symbolic weight than negotiating room, which is how both sides prefer it. Taiwan fires missiles while the handshakes are arranged, China announces four red lines before the agenda opens, and Russia sends eight hundred drones into Ukraine to ensure nobody forgets the other war. At this scale, summits are less about what is decided than what each party needs to be seen deciding.-- MB