China of the future, maybe, appeared a friend of America (7)
I believe the answer is:
rosebud
'china of the future maybe' is the definition.
(bud of a China rose)
'appeared a friend of america' is the wordplay.
'appeared' becomes 'rose' (rise can mean to appear or arrive).
'a friend of america' becomes 'bud' (US term for a friend).
'rose'+'bud'='ROSEBUD'
(Other definitions for rosebud that I've seen before include "(Poetically) a pretty young girl" , "Preminger film" , "Immature ornamental flower" , "Young flower - Citizen Kane's last word" , "Young flower (gathering recommended!)" .)