Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday said that China-US ties would impact the “destiny of mankind,” as he met with a group of US senators in Beijing.
US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is the latest high-level US official to go to China as Washington seeks to ease tensions with Beijing, leading a six-person delegation.
“How China and the United States get along with each other in the face of a world of change and turmoil will determine the future and destiny of mankind,” Xi said as he met with Schumer at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People.
Photo: EPA-EFE
“I have said many times, including to several presidents, that we have 1,000 reasons to improve China-US relations, but not one reason to ruin them,” Xi said, adding that China-US ties are “the most important bilateral relationship in the world.”
Schumer, in turn, told Xi that “our countries, together, will shape this century.”
“That is why we must manage our relationship responsibly and respectfully,” he said.
Earlier, China’s top diplomat Wang Yi (王毅) said he hoped Washington and Beijing could manage their differences “more rationally.”
Meeting with Schumer at Beijing’s Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang told the senate delegation he hoped their visit would help the two sides “manage existing differences more rationally, helping the relationship between the two countries return to the track of healthy development.”
Wang also said he hoped that they would “more accurately understand China” after the trip, which he said comes as the world is in a “turbulent period of change.”
“The crisis in Ukraine has not yet subsided, and warfare has re-emerged in the Middle East,” he said. “All these various challenges need to be addressed by the international community, and China and the United States should play their due roles.”
Schumer, in turn, thanked the Chinese delegation for their hospitality, noting that there were several issues of “great concern” he was seeking to raise during his visit.
He said “a level playing field for American business and workers” was his delegation’s “No. 1 goal.”
“Holding accountable China-based companies supplying deadly chemicals fueling the fentanyl crisis in America” was another objective, he told Wang, as was “ensuring China does not support Russia’s immoral war against Ukraine.”
“Advancing human rights” was an additional priority, Schumer said.
Schumer also said that he was “very disappointed” by a Sunday statement from Beijing’s foreign ministry on the escalating violence between Israel and the Palestinians.
Beijing on Sunday called for all sides to show “calm” and “cease fire immediately.”
It did not explicitly condemn a Palestinian attack that has left hundreds in Israel dead, instead urging the establishment of a two-state solution to end the violence.
“The ongoing events in Israel over the past few days are horrific,” Schumer told Wang. “I urge you and the Chinese people to stand with the Israeli people and condemn these cowardly and vicious attacks. The foreign ministry’s statement ... showed no sympathy or support for Israel during these tough, troubled times.”
In response to a question on Schumer’s comments at a regular news conference, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Mao Ning (毛寧) said that China was “highly concerned about the escalation of conflict.”
“We are very saddened by civilian casualties caused by the conflict,” she said. “We also oppose and condemn actions that harm civilians.”
Schumer reiterated his call for Beijing to support Israel in his meeting with Xi, urging the Chinese leader to “stand with the Israeli people.”
Schumer yesterday also met with Zhao Leji (趙樂際), the head of the standing committee of the National People’s Congress.
“As the two great powers it is natural we find ourselves in competition in areas like trade, technology, diplomacy and more,” Schumer told Zhao. “We welcome this competition. We do not seek conflict.”
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