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American leader visits overseas have historically been an chance to showcase the strength of the United States on the international platform. Donald Trump's multi-day swing through eastern Asia, on the other hand, has been a show of the authority of Trump – but also, at points, of that authority's boundaries.

Trump's destinations in Malaysia, Japan and South Korea over the course of the initial days were an demonstration in pleasing a at times volatile American president. It was an admission that Trump, with the stroke of a pen, could impose duties and further steps that have the capacity to harm the markets of trade-reliant nations.

His sit-down with Beijing's head Xi Jinping on the last day, however, was something entirely different.

It was a encounter of equals on the global stage, where the consequences for the two powers – for their economies, for their world reputation, for the prosperity of their populations – were immense.

With China, Trump may use his authority, but those steps entail repercussions. They come with a price.

• Trump praises 'amazing' encounter with Xi but no pact finalized
• The Chinese president and the US leader find short-term ceasefire as Beijing plays longer game

For the first four days, Trump's recent foray into international relations was uneventful.

Each visit was marked by a mix of traditional commercial discussions – arrangements made under the pressure of Trump's "equivalent" tariffs – and personal accommodations that at points approached the subservient.

In Malaysia, the president secured entry to key materials and made advances toward concluding trade arrangements with south-east Asian nations. He also presided over a pact that should alleviate border tensions between Thailand and Cambodia – the sort of "peace deal" the president loves to tout.

In the Japanese leg, the president's helicopter passed by a Tokyo Tower displayed US flag colors – with a top in golden.

Recently chosen Leader the Japanese leader outlined $half-trillion in Japanese investments in the America and offered the president a offering of 250 cherry trees for America's 250th anniversary, and a golf equipment and case that came from Shinzo Abe, the killed former prime minister who developed ties with Trump in his previous administration.

She also became the newest international head to suggest Trump for his much-desired peace award.

Keeping pace, the Korean government greeted Trump with guns performing a honor salute and a military band that played Hail to the Chief and YMCA – the Village People anthem that has turned into a political gathering standard.

Head the Korean president held an "recognition ritual" for the US leader during which he gave the US president his country's premier award and a copy of an ancient Korean dynastic crown.

Lunch with Lee contained a "Peacemaker's Dessert" of gold-covered chocolate squares. Subsequently, the South Koreans offered Trump fine beverage at an intimate dinner in Trump's honour with multiple world leaders participating in the APEC meeting.

In the United States, Trump may be the target of "Anti-Authority" rallies by Americans who oppose his limit-pushing increases of presidential power, but during his Asian swing he was handled as nobility.

And like the kings of history, Trump arrived in South Korea demanding payment – in the form of $200bn in monetary contributions, $twenty billion a year, from South Korea to the US, to be used at the direction of Trump's leadership. Consent on the details of those transfers contributed to that the tax percentage on Korean goods to the America would decrease from a quarter to fifteen percent.

The central moment of Trump's Asian tour came in its final hours, though, as he met with Xi.

In that setting, the authority balance between heads of the world's two largest economies was markedly different than the interactions the president had with his overseas colleagues in earlier stops.

Missing were all the pomp and the display. No military bands, no protocol units, no meticulously designed dining selections marking shared goodwill. Rather, the pair of counterparts and their top aides were seated across a large pale discussion surface in a plain armed forces facility just off the runway of the city of Busan's global terminal.

It was possibly a reflection of the significant risks that when the president made contact with Xi in Busan, he seemed