Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday delivered a carefully calibrated message to US President Donald Trump as the two leaders met in Beijing after a gap of nine years, declaring that cooperation between the world’s two largest economies was more important than confrontation.
Opening the high-stakes bilateral meeting in the Chinese capital, Xi said he believed that the “common interests between China and the United States outweigh our differences,” while warning that conflict between the two powers would hurt both sides.
Trump in China - Special Coverage
“When the two sides cooperate, both benefit; when they fight, both suffer,” Xi said in remarks that immediately drew global attention amid growing geopolitical tensions and economic rivalry between Washington and Beijing.
The meeting marked Trump’s second visit to China and his first since his previous presidency. Xi noted that the visit came at a time when “changes unseen in a century are accelerating” and the world was standing at a “new crossroads.”
In a wide-ranging opening address, the Chinese President framed the relationship between Beijing and Washington as one that would shape not only bilateral ties but also the future global order. Referring to the long-discussed “Thucydides Trap” - the theory that an emerging power and an established power are destined for conflict - Xi said both countries needed to avoid confrontation and instead create “a new normalization of relations between major powers.”
Xi also underlined the importance of China and the United States working together on global challenges and providing stability to an increasingly volatile world. He described the questions facing both countries as “questions of history, questions of the world, and questions of the people.”
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump, addressing the bilateral meeting, said, "... The relationship between China and the USA is going to be better than ever before... We're going to have a fantastic future together. I have such respect for China, the job you've done. You're a great leader. I say it to everybody. Sometimes people don't like me saying it, but I say it anyway. On behalf of all of the great delegations that we have, we have the greatest businessmen, the biggest and, I guess, the best in the world... I didn't want the second or the third in the company. I wanted only the top. They're here today to pay respects to you and to China. They look forward to trade and doing business, and it's going to be totally reciprocal on our behalf. I really look very much forward to our discussion. It's a big discussion. Those who say this is maybe the biggest summit ever. They can never remember anything like it..."
The optics and language of the meeting are being closely watched globally as relations between the United States and China remain strained over trade disputes, technology restrictions, Taiwan, military competition in the Indo-Pacific, and supply-chain tensions.
Despite periodic diplomatic engagements in recent years, mistrust between the two powers has persisted. Analysts view the latest Trump-Xi meeting as an attempt to stabilise ties amid concerns that escalating rivalry between Washington and Beijing could further destabilise the global economy and security environment.
Source: India Latest News, Breaking News Today, Top News Headlines | Times Now
