At APEC 2024, Chinese leader Xi tells Biden he’s ‘ready to work’ with Trump

Chinese President Xi Jinping has held his final meeting with his outgoing counterpart successful the United States, Democrat Joe Biden.

But Xi’s words connected Saturday seemed directed not simply astatine Biden but astatine his Republican successor, returning President Donald Trump.

In his brushwood with Biden connected the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation acme successful Lima, Peru, Xi emphasised the value of the US and China maintaining “mutual respect”.

While Xi did not notation Trump by name, helium gave a motion to the incoming US president’s triumph successful the November 5 election.

“The United States has precocious concluded its elections. China’s extremity of a stable, steadfast and sustainable China-US narration remains unchanged,” Xi said.

But, helium warned, “If we instrumentality each different arsenic rival oregon adversary, prosecute vicious contention and question to wounded each other, we would roil the narration oregon adjacent acceptable it back.”

Trump, who served arsenic president antecedently from 2017 to 2021, oversaw a play of heightened tensions with China, including a commercialized warfare sparked by his imposition of tariffs connected Chinese goods.

China responded with its ain tariffs and commercialized restrictions, though experts warned that the escalation connected some sides damaged the 2 countries’ economies.

On Saturday, Xi appeared to widen a manus of relationship to Trump, encouraging their countries to enactment unneurotic for communal gain.

“China is acceptable to enactment with the caller US medication to support communication, grow practice and negociate differences truthful arsenic to strive for a dependable modulation of the China-US narration for the payment of the 2 peoples,” helium said.

US President Joe Biden and China’s President Xi Jinping be a bilateral gathering connected the sidelines of the APEC Summit successful Lima, Peru, connected November 16 [Leah Millis/Reuters]

A large run theme

Trump has reprised his “America First” doctrine arsenic helium prepares to participate the White House for a 2nd time.

China was a repeated diagnostic of the Republican’s run speeches, arsenic helium led a palmy bid for re-election successful the 2024 US statesmanlike race.

As portion of a transportation to American voters, Trump pledged to protect US manufacturing from Chinese competition.

“I charged China hundreds of billions of dollars successful taxes and tariffs. They paid us,” Trump boasted astatine his last run rally successful Grand Rapids, Michigan, connected November 4.

“And you cognize what? We’re going to get on large with China. We’re going to get on good. I privation to get on with them. President Xi was large until COVID came. Then, I wasn’t truthful thrilled with him.”

During the tallness of the COVID-19 pandemic, Trump blamed the Chinese person for letting the microorganism dispersed by “allowing flights to permission China and infect the world”. He besides repeatedly called COVID-19 the “China virus”.

Despite their rocky history, Xi called to congratulate Trump connected his 2nd word the time aft the election, connected November 6.

Xi has led the Chinese authorities since 2013, and nether his authority, the two-term bounds was abolished for presidents.

Trump has expressed admiration for Xi’s authorization implicit the Chinese government, which immoderate critics comparison with authoritarian rule.

“I got on precise good with President Xi. He’s a large guy. He wrote maine a beauteous enactment the different time erstwhile helium heard astir what happened,” Trump said aft the assassination attempt connected him successful July. “It’s a bully happening to get along, not a atrocious thing.”

Goodbye to Biden

Xi and Biden person had their ain rocky history, with incidents similar the 2023 downing of an alleged Chinese “spy” balloon fuelling spikes successful tensions.

China maintained that the balloon was a civilian craft collecting upwind data, and it denounced the US’s determination to sprout it down with a rocket aft it passed implicit delicate US subject installations.

Biden, who turns 82 connected Wednesday, exchanged immoderate banter with his Chinese counterpart arsenic they spoke to reporters successful their last meeting.

“Can you enactment connected your earpiece? We person simultaneous interpreting,” Xi asked Biden astatine their day quality conference.

Biden responded with a joke. “I’ve learned to talk Chinese,” helium said with a chuckle.

The US president continued by acknowledging that relations person not ever been creaseless betwixt their 2 countries.

“We haven’t ever agreed, but our conversations person ever been candid and ever been frank. We person ne'er kidded 1 another. We’ve been level with 1 another. And I deliberation that’s vital,” Biden said, pointing crossed the array arsenic helium work from prepared remarks.

“These conversations forestall miscalculations, and they guarantee the contention betwixt our 2 countries volition not veer into conflict.”

He utilized his last brushwood arsenic president with Xi to propulsion respective US priorities. In a readout released by the White House, Biden reportedly pushed for greater instrumentality enforcement practice to stem the travel of synthetic drugs to the US.

He and Xi besides spoke astir the emerging challenges posed by artificial quality (AI), including with regards to its usage with atomic weapons.

“The 2 leaders affirmed the request to support quality power implicit the determination to usage atomic weapons,” the readout explained.

“The 2 leaders besides stressed the request to see cautiously the imaginable risks and make AI exertion successful the subject tract successful a prudent and liable manner.”

Biden besides confirmed that the US’s “one China policy” remained “unchanged”: The US acknowledges the authorities successful Beijing arsenic the sole authorities of China. It does not person ceremonial diplomatic relations with the self-governing land of Taiwan, which China considers its territory.

China has called acknowledging Taiwan’s sovereignty a “red line” successful its narration with the US.

While Biden has antecedently pledged to support Taiwan should it ever look attack, connected Saturday, helium struck a enactment of peace, calling for a continuation of the presumption quo.

“He reiterated that the United States opposes immoderate unilateral changes to the presumption quo from either side, that we expect cross-Strait differences to beryllium resolved by peaceful means, and that the satellite has an involvement successful bid and stableness successful the Taiwan Strait,” the White House readout said.

But, it added, Biden besides “called for an extremity to destabilizing PRC [People’s Republic of China] subject enactment astir Taiwan”.