Xi Jinping congratulates Trump, calls for US, China to strengthen dialogue

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday congratulated President-elect Donald Trump on his election victory and called for China and the US to find the right way to manage the differences by strengthening dialogue and communication.

Xi, in his congratulatory message to Trump, called for the two countries to strengthen dialogue and communication, properly manage differences and expand mutually beneficial cooperation, official media reports said.

“I urge China and the US to expand mutually beneficial cooperation,” Xi said. “I call for the right way for China, and the US to get along in the new era,” he said, adding that both the countries, the top two economies of the world, should strengthen dialogue and communication.

History teaches that China and the United States gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation, Xi said, noting that a stable, sound and sustainable China-US relationship serves the two countries’ shared interests and meets the aspirations of the international community.

He expressed the hope that the two sides will uphold the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, strengthen dialogue and communication, properly manage differences and expand mutually beneficial cooperation.

In his first term, Trump launched a trade war against China by imposing tariffs on over USD 380 billion on Chinese imports in 2018-19, saying that China is ripping off America. His successor Joe Biden has continued the tariffs, denting China’s profits.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning, during a media briefing, dismissed the question on Trump’s campaign promise to sharply raise tariffs on Chinese imports, higher than his first term. “We do not respond to hypothetical questions,” she said.

During his campaign, Trump threatened to impose over 60 per cent tariffs on Chinese imports which last year accounted for USD 427.2 billion. The China-US relations became tense over a host of policies pursued by Trump including blocking Chinese tech.

He also blamed China for the Covid-19 pandemic, saying that the virus emanated from a bio-lab in Wuhan. The military relations between the two countries also remained tense under Trump’s previous presidency.