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Presidential journeys overseas have traditionally been an occasion to demonstrate the influence of the US on the world stage. The president's multi-day swing through East Asia, by contrast, has been a display of the clout of Trump – but also, at times, of that power's limitations.

The president's destinations in Malaysia, Japan and South Korea over the duration of the initial days were an display in satisfying a at times unpredictable American president. It was an admission that Trump, with the flick of a document, could enact duties and further steps that have the capacity to harm the financial systems of trade-reliant states.

His discussion with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday, nevertheless, was a completely different scenario.

It was a meeting of peers on the international scene, where the consequences for the two powers – for their markets, for their world reputation, for the welfare of their populations – were enormous.

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

• Trump describes 'remarkable' meeting with Xi but no pact agreed
• Xi and the US leader establish temporary truce as China plays longer game

For the initial phase, the president's recent foray into international relations was smooth sailing.

Each stop was punctuated by a mix of traditional trade negotiations – agreements made under the pressure of Trump's "equivalent" taxes – and special treatment that at times verged on the subservient.

In Malaysia, the president obtained entry to key materials and made progress toward concluding economic agreements with ASEAN countries. He also presided over a pact that should ease frontier issues between Thailand and Cambodia – the type of "peace agreement" the US leader prefers to promote.

In the Japanese leg, Trump's helicopter flew past a Tokyo Tower lit red, white and blue – with a peak in Trumpian gold.

Newly elected Prime Minister the Japanese leader outlined $550bn in Tokyo's funding in the America and presented the US leader a offering of a quarter-thousand cherry trees for America's 250th anniversary, and a sports gear and carrier that was owned by former Prime Minister Abe, the killed former prime minister who developed ties with the president in his previous administration.

She also became the newest international head to suggest the president for his highly-coveted Nobel Peace Prize.

Keeping pace, Korea greeted the president with cannons firing a honor salute and a service ensemble that rendered Hail to the Chief and the classic tune – the band anthem that has become a Trump rally anthem.

Leader Lee Jae Myung held an "recognition ritual" for the US leader during which he gave the American leader his state's top honor and a replica of an historical royal headpiece.

Noon repast with Lee featured a "Peacemaker's Dessert" of gold-encrusted brownies. Later that day, the Koreans offered the president vineyard wine at an intimate dinner in Trump's recognition with multiple world leaders attending the APEC conference.

In the US, the president may be the subject of "Anti-Monarchy" rallies by the public who disapprove of his authority-expanding extensions of leader's control, but during his East Asia visit he was received as monarchy.

And like the rulers of old, Trump arrived in the Korean nation requesting tribute – in the guise of $two hundred billion in financial transfers, $twenty billion a year, from the host nation to the US, to be allocated at the guidance of the president's administration. Consent on the conditions of those transfers contributed to that the duty level on South Korean exports to the America would decrease from a quarter to fifteen percent.

The main event of the president's Asian tour took place in its concluding phase, however, as he sat down with the Chinese leader.

At that location, the power dynamic between leaders of the planet's biggest economic powers was noticeably distinct than the meetings the president had with his international peers in previous days.

Absent were all the ceremony and the display. No service ensembles, absent ceremonial troops, missing carefully crafted dining selections honoring bilateral friendship. Instead, the pair of counterparts and their senior advisors were seated across a long white discussion surface in a nondescript armed forces facility just off the runway of the city of Busan's international airport.

It was possibly a indication of the high stakes that when the president shook hands with Xi in the southern port, he looked