If President Barack Obama was hoping for a graceful start to his final trip to Asia as commander in chief, this wasn't it.
Confrontations between Chinese officials and White House staff and other diplomatic dust-ups were out in the open from the moment Air Force One landed in Hangzhou, where world leaders were attending an economic summit.
The first sign of trouble: There was no staircase for Obama to exit the plane and descend on the red carpet. Obama used an alternative exit.
On the tarmac, a quarrel broke out between a presidential aide and a Chinese official who demanded the journalists traveling with Obama be prohibited from getting anywhere near him. It was a breach of the tradition observed whenever the American president arrives in a foreign place.
When the White House official insisted the U.S. would set the rules for its own leader, her Chinese counterpart shot back.
"This is our country! This is our airport!" the Chinese official yelled.
The dispute escalated when a Chinese official tried to keep Susan Rice, Obama's national security adviser, away from her boss. Rice, one of the highest-ranking officials in U.S. government, seemed less than amused when asked about it by a reporter.
"They did things that weren't anticipated," she said.
Obama aide and Chinese official in G20 spat
If President Barack Obama was hoping for a graceful start to his final trip to Asia as commander in chief, this wasn't it.
A confrontation between a White House aide and a Chinese official, and other diplomatic dust-ups were out in the open from the moment Air Force One landed in Hangzhou, the site of the G20 economic summit.
The first sign of trouble: There was no staircase for Obama to exit the plane and descend on the red carpet. Obama used an alternative exit.
On the tarmac, a quarrel broke out between a presidential aide and a Chinese official who demanded the journalists travelling with Obama be prohibited from getting anywhere near him. It was a breach of the tradition observed whenever the American president arrives in a foreign place.
When the White House official insisted the US would set the rules for its own leader, her Chinese counterpart shot back.
"This is our country! This is our airport!" the Chinese official yelled.
Also, a Chinese official tried to keep Obama's national security adviser, Susan Rice, away from her boss.
Rice seemed less than amused by the incident when asked about it by a reporter.
"They did things that weren't anticipated," she said.
Later, two Chinese officials - one working to assist the American delegation - had to be physically separated after trying to hit each other outside an event.
Hangzhou, China (CNN)US President Barack Obama is continuing his diplomatic slog in China Sunday, meeting with counterparts from the United Kingdom and Turkey -- two essential US allies -- as each leader confronts widespread internal strife back home.
It's the second day of high-stakes diplomacy for Obama, who arrived here Saturday to an inauspicious welcome: no red-carpeted stairs for Air Force One and open quarreling on the tarmac between Chinese and US officials over press access. Other leaders arriving for the G20 here were greeted with a far grander welcome.
The rancor continued throughout Saturday as Obama met with Chinese President Xi Jinping to cement a carbon reduction agreement and haggle over longstanding disputes like cybersecurity and maritime aggression.
Obama said Sunday the US would never apologize for its insistence upon press access, but said he understood why Chinese officials may have chafed at the Americans' demands.
"We don't leave our values and ideals behind when we take these trips. It can cause some friction," Obama said following his meeting with Theresa May, the newly installed British prime minister. At the same time, Obama cautioned against inflating the incident.
"I wouldn't over crank the significance of it," he said. "We've got a lot of planes and helicopters and a lot of cars and a lot of guys and, you know, if you're a host country, sometimes it may feel a little bit much."
Obama was beginning his day of talks as his Secretary of State John Kerry was working to reach a deal on ending violence in Syria. The President said Kerry and Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov had been working "around the clock" to hammer out an agreement, but hadn't yet reached a final accord.
"I think it's premature for us to say that there is a clear path forward, but there's the possibility at least for us to make some progress on that front," Obama said.
Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin were expected to interact during this week's Group of 20 summit, though a formal meeting was not on the books. Any deal to end widespread suffering in Syria was to be met with doubt after past settlements failed.
