Xi Jinping's procession down the Mall towards Buckingham Palace, with the queen sitting alongside in a resplendent gold-roofed carriage drawn by six grey horses, is a scene that the Chinese president will have relished. Never mind that a year ago a state-run newspaper in China had derided Britain as the relic of an "old, declining empire" given to "eccentric acts" to hide its embarrassment over its fading power. British pomp, as laid on for Mr Xi in its full gaudiness during his first state visit to London this week, was relayed at fawning length to television viewers back in China.
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