Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) said his country is willing to work with the US to find ways to cooperate, comments that come before a potential meeting with US President Joe Biden at a G20 summit next month.
Better communication between the two nations would bolster global peace and development, Xi said in a letter to the Chinese National Committee on US-China Relations’ annual dinner on Wednesday, Xinhua news agency reported.
“China stands ready to work with the United States to find the right way to get along with each other in the new era on the basis of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, which will benefit not only the two countries, but also the whole world,” Xi said.
Photo: REUTERS
The comments strike a conciliatory tone after a Chinese Communist Party congress during which Xi secured a norm-breaking third term and promised China would stand its ground in a more hostile world.
Xi’s remarks echoed his message last year to the same gala for the group, which aims to promote China-US cooperation. That event similarly came before a video summit with the US leader in November last year.
Still, Wednesday’s remarks signal an effort to maintain ties despite disputes over Taiwan, the semiconductor industry and Beijing’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Photo: Bloomberg
Speaking to US Department of Defense officials on Wednesday, Biden said that even as the US maintains its military advantage over China, “we’re making it clear that we don’t seek conflict.”
“There’ll be stiff competition, but there doesn’t need to be conflict,” he added.
Earlier this week, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the Biden administration would “keep the lines of communication open, and that includes at the leader level.”
He said teams were still working on a possible meeting between Biden and Xi when world leaders gather at a G20 meeting in Bali, Indonesia, next month, in what would be Biden’s first talks with Xi as president.
Asked about a possible meeting between Xi and Biden, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Mao Ning (毛寧) yesterday said that she had no information on such plans.
The US Department of Commerce this month unveiled sweeping regulations that limit Beijing’s access to chips, the Biden administration’s most aggressive move to try to stop China from developing capabilities to challenge the US’ global technological dominance.
Xi, in turn, has pledged that his nation would prevail in its fight to develop strategically important technology.
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