Chinese President Xi Jinping Says Ready To Cooperate With The United States

Chinese President Xi Jinping And Former President Of The United States Joe Biden shook hands at APEC, Lima, Peru (AP) Event

JAKARTA - China's President Xi Jinping has held his final meeting with his partner who will step down from his post in the United States, Joe Biden of the Democratic Party. However, Xi said on Saturday, November 16, apparently not only addressed to Biden, but also to his successor to Republican President Donald Trump.

In his meeting with Biden on the sidelines of a summit of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in Lima, Peru, Xi stressed the importance of the US and China maintaining "a sense of mutual respect".

Although Xi did not name Trump, he signaled the upcoming victory of the US president in the general election on November 5.

"The United States recently completed the general election. China's goal for stable, healthy, and sustainable China-US relations remains unchanged," Xi said.

However, he warned, "If we consider each other as rivals or enemies, pursuing cruel competition, and trying to hurt each other, we will mess up the relationship or even make it back down." he added again as reported by Al Jazeera's VOI, Sunday, November 17.

Trump, who previously served as president from 2017 to 2021, oversees an escalating period of tension with China, including a trade war triggered by the imposition of tariffs on Chinese goods.

China responded with its own tariffs and trade restrictions, although experts warn that escalation on both sides is damaging to the economy of both countries.

On Saturday, Xi seemed to be holding out a friendly hand to Trump, encouraging their country to work together for mutual gain.

"Chingkok is ready to cooperate with the new US government to maintain communication, expand cooperation, and manage differences so that they can seek a stable transition from China-US relations for the benefit of the two nations," he said.