Hu Jintao lacklustre at Apec summit in Vladivostok

Dogged by domestic woes and diplomatic disputes, President Hu Jintao's trip to Vladivostok seemed more like a lacklustre swansong than the triumphant affirmation of his legacy it was supposed to be.

Instead of basking in the spotlight of the Apec summit one last time before stepping down next year, Hu has found himself coping with earthquakes, poor economic news, succession rumours and even a media gaffe involving his new top aide.

The latter marred what was arguably the highlight of Hu's trip to the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum summit: an unscheduled 15-minute chat with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda. The meeting on Sunday was seen as a chance to ease tensions in the row over the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea.

But the meeting, on the eve of the Japanese government's announcement yesterday that it would buy the islands, known as the Senkakus in Japan, appears to have been marred by an unusual mix-up in the official press account.

Xinhua filed a report on the meeting early on Sunday afternoon, including a stern warning by Hu, but withdrew it inexplicably less than 30 minutes later. Eight hours passed before a revised story was posted, including a new quote from Hu, saying, "China and Japan can work together."

While such a delay is typical of Hu, who is known for insisting on personally correcting policy documents and press releases, the revision was not. Government and media sources said the delay might have involved Hu's newly appointed "chief of staff", Li Zhanshu .