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Hangzhou, China: White House officials expect sharp words and the occasional elbow when a US president travels to China. But the reception that President Barack Obama and his staff got when they arrived here Saturday afternoon for the G20 summit was bruising, even by Chinese standards.

When Air Force One rolled to a stop, there was no staircase for Obama to disembark in view of the television cameras. Instead, he emerged from a rarely used door in the belly of the plane. It did not matter, since the reporters who normally cover the president's movements were kept behind a rope under a wing, where they could not see him, prompting an angry exchange between a security official and White House aides.

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Classy as always China. https://t.co/Mn9TRvoU0P

— DIA (@DefenseIntel) September 3, 2016

When Susan Rice, the national security adviser, ducked under the rope, she was immediately stopped by a Chinese official, who heatedly challenged her. Asked later by a reporter what had happened, a diplomatic Rice said, "They did things that weren't anticipated."

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The surprises continued at the West Lake State House, where Obama met President Xi Jinping. White House aides, protocol officers and Secret Service agents were stopped at a security checkpoint, according to a pool report. A shouting match, in Chinese, broke out over how many Americans should be allowed into the building before Obama's arrival, and whether their names were on the proper lists.

As the words escalated, there were fears that a fight might erupt. "Calm down, please," a White House official said. A Chinese Foreign Ministry official said, "Stop, please," adding, "There are reporters there."

No roll-up staircase available: US president Barack Obama exits Air Force One from its own hatch, at the Hangzhou ...

No roll-up staircase available: US president Barack Obama exits Air Force One from its own hatch, at the Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport. Photo: AP

"The president is arriving here in an hour," a member of the White House staff said in frustration.