Chinese leader Xi Jinping argued in Saturday's conversation with Joe Biden that “China is willing to work with the new US administration” to “strive for a stable transformation of Sino-US relations for the benefit of both nations.” The US president noted that both countries “cannot allow this rivalry to turn into a conflict.” – This is our responsibility – he emphasized.
President of the USA Joe Biden met with the leader on Saturday China Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Community (APEC) summit. The last bilateral meeting between outgoing President Biden and Xi lasted about two hours and took place in the capital PeruLima. It was the first conversation between the leaders of the world's two largest economies in seven months.
During the meeting, they both described Washington-Beijing relations as “the most important” in the world and said they needed to be managed responsibly to prevent conflict, CNN reported.
“China's goal of a stable, healthy and balanced China-US relationship remains unchanged,” Xi said, referring to the recent US elections won by Donald Trump.
The Chinese leader admitted that there were also frictions in bilateral relations. “China is willing to work with the new US administration to maintain communication, expand cooperation and deal with differences, so as to pursue a stable transformation of China-US relations for the benefit of both nations,” he added.
Biden: Our two countries cannot allow this rivalry to turn into a conflict
CNN reports that Biden used the meeting to raise a number of controversial issues with Xi for the last time, including the topic Taiwaneconomy, Ukraine and fentanyl production.
The American leader admitted that the relationship between them had experienced “ups and downs.” – We didn't always agree, but our conversations were always honest and open. We never made fun of each other. We were honest with each other. And I think this is crucial, he said.
He emphasized that United States and China must do everything to ensure that competition between the two countries does not take on a disturbing dimension. – Our two countries cannot allow this rivalry to turn into a conflict. “It's our responsibility, and I think we've proven over the last four years that it's possible to maintain this relationship,” Biden said.
Xi JinpingPAP/EPA/Paolo Aguilar
Tension in US-China relations
US-China relations have been very tense in recent years. Both sides argued, among other things: on trade and technological issues, on China's close relations with the attacking Ukraine Russiathe status of Taiwan, human rights ethnic minorities in China, Hong Kong's autonomy, origins coronavirus or Beijing's territorial claims in the surrounding seas.
During his first term, Trump waged a trade and technology war against China. In the campaign before the last elections, he announced, among others: increasing tariffs on Chinese goods by 60%. He appointed several politicians known for their very tough stance towards Beijing, such as future Secretary of State Marco Rubio and future National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, to important positions in his future administration.
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Main photo source: PAP/EPA/Paolo Aguilar