the leader of china Xi Jinping He last met with US President Joe Biden on Saturday, but was already looking ahead to President-elect Donald Trump and his “America First” policies, saying Beijing “is ready to work with a new US administration.”
During their conversations on the sidelines of the annual meeting Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation SummitXi warned that a stable relationship between China and the United States was essential not only for the two nations, but also for the “future and destiny of humanity.”
“Make the right decision,” he warned. “Continue to explore the right path for two important countries to get along with each other.”
Without mentioning Trump by name, Xi appeared to signal concern that the incoming president’s protectionist rhetoric during the election campaign could push the U.S.-China relationship into another valley.
“China is willing to work with a new US administration to maintain communication, expand cooperation and manage differences to strive for a smooth transition of the China-US relationship for the benefit of the two peoples,” Xi said. through an interpreter.
Xi, who is firmly entrenched at the top of China’s political hierarchy, spoke forcefully in his brief remarks to reporters. Biden, who is ending more than 50 years of public service, spoke in broader strokes about where the relationship between the two countries has gone. He reflected not only on the last four years but also on the decades the two have known each other.
“We have not always agreed, but our conversations have always been sincere and frank. “We have never deceived each other,” Biden said. “These talks avoid miscalculations and ensure that competition between our two countries does not lead to conflict.”
Biden was expected to urge Xi to deter North Korea from further deepening your support for Russia’s war against Ukraine. The leaders, surrounded by their top advisors, gathered around a long rectangle of tables in a large conference room at the Defines Hotel and Conference Center in Lima.
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China “hosted” this year’s meeting, after Xi and Biden met a year ago on the sidelines of APEC in Northern California, a meeting hosted by the United States. They had a lot to discuss, including China’s indirect support for Russiaissues of human rights, technology and Taiwan, the autonomous democracy that Beijing claims as its own.
there is a lot of uncertainty on what lies ahead in the US-China relationship under Trump, who campaigned promising to impose taxes 60% tariffs on Chinese imports.
Many American companies, including Nike and eyewear retailer Warby Parker, have already been diversifying their sourcing outside of China. Footwear brand Steve Madden says it plans reduce imports from China up to 45% next year.
In a congratulatory message to Trump after his victory over Vice President Kamala Harris, Xi called on the United States and China to manage their differences and get along in a new era. In front of cameras on Saturday, Xi spoke with Biden, but it was unmistakable that his message was directed at Trump.
“In a major and flourishing scientific-technological revolution, neither decoupling nor supply chain disruption is a solution,” Xi said. “Only mutual and beneficial cooperation can lead to common development. ‘A small yard, a high fence’ is not what a major country should pursue.”
After being greeted by Xi, Biden ignored shouted questions from reporters about his concerns about the incoming Trump administration and North Korea. The leaders also did not speak to reporters after they made their brief comments at the beginning of the meeting.
Biden administration officials would advise Trump’s team that managing intense competition with Beijing will likely be the most important foreign policy challenge they will face, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said.
Biden has considered his relationship with Xi one of the most important on the international stage and has worked hard to cultivate it. The two first met on trips to the United States and China when they were both vice presidents, interactions that both say left a lasting impression.
“For more than a decade, you and I have spent many hours together, both here and in China and in between,” Biden said. “We’ve spent a lot of time dealing with these issues.”
But the last four years have presented a steady series of difficult times.
The FBI this week offered new details of a federal investigation in chinese government efforts to hack into US telecommunications networks. Initial findings have revealed a “broad and significant” cyber espionage campaign aimed at stealing information from Americans working in government and politics.
US intelligence officials have also assessed China. has increased sales to Russia of machine tools, microelectronics and other technologies that Moscow is using to produce missiles, tanks, planes and other weapons for use in his war against Ukraine.
And tensions flared last year after Biden ordered the downing of a Chinese spy balloon passing through the United States.
Biden seeks Xi step up Chinese engagement to prevent an already dangerous moment with North Korea from becoming even worse.
Biden, South Korean President Yoon Seok Yul and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Friday He condemned the decision of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un send thousands of troops to help Moscow repel Ukrainian forces that have seized territory in Russia’s Kursk border region.
Biden called it “dangerous and destabilizing cooperation.”
White House officials have expressed frustration with Beijing, which accounts for the vast majority of North Korea’s trade, for not doing more to rein in Pyongyang.
The North Koreans have also provided Russia with artillery and other munitions, according to U.S. and South Korean intelligence officials. And the United States, Japan and South Korea have expressed alarm over Pyongyang’s escalation. ballistic missile testing cadence.
Kim ordered test exercises in the run-up to this month’s US elections and claims to have made progress in efforts to build ability to attack the continental US.
Xi and Biden began their day at the leaders’ retreat at the APEC summit, participating in a photo in which everyone wore scarves made from vicuña wool, a symbolic animal for Peru. It is common practice for leaders at these meetings to receive a gift (usually traditional clothing from the host country) which they wear for the photo.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
