During Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Washington, his wife Peng Liyuan attracted attention with a series of public appearances that presented a more informal image of China against the backdrop of complicated relations between Beijing and Washington, Reuters reported, News.bg reports.
Peng spoke in English with US First Lady Melania Trump without an interpreter and attended a performance by a youth choir at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art. She quietly sang along with the children who performed the Chinese folk song "Jasmine Blossom," and after the performance, they greeted her with the words: "Thank you, Mother Peng!".
The Chinese ambassador to Washington, Xie Feng, also emphasized her role, posting a video of the event and stating that Peng encouraged American youth to study Chinese language and culture and to be "ambassadors of friendship" between the two countries.
According to Joe Mazur, a geopolitical analyst at the consulting company Trivium China, Peng contributes to presenting a "more human face" of Chinese diplomacy and creates positive moments in US-China relations.
From singer to first lady
Peng Liyuan has been known in China for many years as a soprano singer in the military. Since Xi Jinping's rise to the top of Chinese politics, the media has begun to pay more attention to her public initiatives.
She is also known for her support for social causes, including initiatives related to people living with HIV/AIDS. Raised in modest circumstances, Peng has built a public image that differs from the traditionally reserved presence of the wives of Chinese leaders.
However, public discussion of the personal lives of top political leaders in China remains limited. The wives of Chinese leaders have traditionally kept a low profile, in part because of the legacy of the era of Jiang Qing - the wife of Mao Zedong and a member of the “Gang of Four“, who played a key role during the Cultural Revolution.
Peng is Xi Jinping's second wife. The couple have a daughter, who studied at Harvard University. Xi himself was previously married to the daughter of a Chinese diplomat.
In a 2007 interview, Peng described her husband as frugal, hardworking, and down-to-earth, and said that at home she did not see him as a political leader, but simply as her husband.