Xi urges Trump to be ‘partners not rivals’ during Beijing talks
Chinese President Xi Jinping called on the United States and China to cooperate rather than compete as he met US President Donald Trump in Beijing during Trump’s state visit to China.
Speaking at the start of talks on Thursday, Xi said global attention was focused on the meeting and described the international situation as unstable and rapidly changing.
“The whole world is watching our meeting,” Xi said.
“Currently, transformation not seen in a century is accelerating across the globe, and the international situation is fluid and turbulent. The world has come to a new crossroads. Can China and the United States overcome the Thucydides trap and create a new paradigm of major country relations? Can we meet global challenges together and provide more stability for the world?”
Xi said both countries had a responsibility to shape future global stability.
“They are the questions of our times that you and I need to answer as leaders of major countries,” he continued.
“China and the United States both stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation. We should be partners, not rivals. We should help each other succeed and prosper together, and find the right way for major countries to get along well with each other in the new era.”
Trump’s visit to China runs from May 13 to 15 and marks his second state visit to the country, as well as the first by a US president since 2017. The trip had originally been planned for April but was postponed at the request of the United States because of the conflict involving Iran.
The leaders previously met in Busan, South Korea, in October, where both sides agreed to pause an escalating tariffs dispute.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
