Melania Trump Couldn’t Take Her Eyes Off Xi Jinping’s Wife: Body Language Expert Spots a Curious Detail

Melania Trump found herself in the spotlight during a meeting with Peng Liyuan, the wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping — and it was not just their impeccable outfits that attracted attention. A body language expert noticed an unusual detail: the US first lady appeared to be mirroring the Chinese guest’s movements and poses.

Melania joined Peng Liyuan during a visit to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art in Washington. The meeting took place after Xi Jinping’s arrival ceremony at the White House and formed part of the Chinese leader’s cultural programme during his visit.

The two women toured the museum’s famous Peacock Room, which houses works of Chinese art, including a collection of Qing dynasty porcelain. They also stopped in front of James McNeill Whistler’s Princess from the Land of Porcelain, viewing the painting alongside museum curators.

For the occasion, Melania opted for a sophisticated black look: a single-breasted lightweight tweed Alexander McQueen jacket and matching skirt, paired with black Christian Louboutin stilettos. Peng Liyuan wore a dark navy qipao with a high stand collar, accessorised with a single silver flower-shaped brooch.

But it was not so much their outfits as Melania’s behaviour that caught the expert’s attention.

Body language expert Judi James told the Daily Mail that both women appeared completely absorbed by the luxurious surroundings and works of art, displaying a shared sense of admiration.

At the same time, she observed that Melania’s outfit almost visually echoed Peng’s look. James noted that the US first lady’s sleek black suit was only slightly accented with white trim compared with her Chinese counterpart’s jacket, while the two women repeatedly adopted remarkably similar poses as they walked around the museum and paused to look at the exhibits.

“Melania’s desire to mirror Peng’s movements suggests respect — to the point that she may even have felt slightly overawed by her presence,” the expert suggested.

According to James, this impression may have been influenced by Peng Liyuan’s background. She is well known in China as a celebrated opera singer and also holds the rank of major general in the People’s Liberation Army of China.

Nevertheless, the meeting between the two first ladies unfolded in an exceptionally warm atmosphere. Peng, who is known in China as a professional singer, joined a performance by a children’s choir from a local Chinese school. Melania smiled at her guest, applauded after every song and at one point exclaimed: “Bravo!”

After the performance, the two women posed for photographs with the children. The choir consisted of 36 pupils, who performed two songs — Jasmine Flower and Songs and Smiles.

Melania and Peng have known each other for several years. They first met in April 2017 at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club. In November of the same year, Melania accompanied her husband on a state visit to Beijing, where the couple toured the Forbidden City and visited a primary school.

This time, cameras closely followed every detail of their encounter — from their similarly restrained manner to their carefully chosen outfits. And it was the apparent synchronisation of Melania and Peng’s movements that became the small detail the body language expert interpreted as a possible sign of particular respect from the US first lady towards her Chinese counterpart.