【明報專訊】PRESIDENT XI JINPING has just wrapped up his trip to the Middle East, which is China's first battle of diplomacy of this year. The first visit in any year by China's paramount leader is invariably given special significance. Xi's trip to the Middle East is no exception. He having raised the curtain on foreign visits, three leitmotifs of the general plan of China's 2016 diplomacy are discernible.