China, U.S. vow to advance dialogue, cooperation as heads of state hold phone talks

Published:  April 04,2024

“Two big countries like China and the United States should not cut off their ties or turn their back on each other, still less slide into conflict or confrontation,” Xi told Biden, calling on the two countries to respect each other, coexist in peace and pursue win-win cooperation. 

On Tuesday evening, Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke with U.S. President Joe Biden on the phone. The two sides agreed to stay in communication and tasked their teams to deliver on the San Francisco vision.

Since the two heads of state met in San Francisco last November, communication and exchanges between China and the U.S. at all levels have become more frequent under the guidance of the San Francisco vision.

Progress has been made in fields such as diplomacy, economy, trade, finance, law enforcement, anti-narcotics, climate change response and people-to-people exchanges.

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with representatives from American business, strategic and academic communities in Beijing, China, March 27, 2024. /Xinhua

Peace, stability, credibility

“As long as both sides see each other as partners and show mutual respect, coexist in peace and cooperate for win-win results, China-U.S. relations will get better,” Xi said while meeting with representatives of the U.S. business, strategic and academic communities on March 27.

Over the past months, officials from both sides have acted on the San Francisco vision in earnest, and the China-U.S. relationship is beginning to stabilize.

In January, the two countries officially launched the China-U.S. Counternarcotics Working Group in Beijing. On January 18, the seventh meeting of the China-U.S. Joint Committee on Cooperation in Agriculture was held in Washington, D.C., marking that the bilateral agricultural cooperation mechanism has been resumed after a nine-year hiatus.

On March 17, a group of 24 American high school students visited Beijing and other Chinese cities for 11 days to experience Chinese culture and technology, as part of the exchange and study program that will invite 50,000 American youths to China over the next five years, an initiative proposed by Xi during his U.S. visit late last year.

During Tuesday’s talks, Xi emphasized three overarching principles that should guide China-U.S. relations in 2024. First, peace must be valued. Second, stability must be prioritized. Third, credibility must be upheld.

The relationship should continue moving forward in a stable, sound and sustainable way, rather than going backward, he stressed.

On the other hand, Xi pointed to some negative factors of the relationship, such as the U.S. adopting a string of measures to suppress China’s trade and technology development, and adding more Chinese entities to its sanctions lists.

“This is not ‘de-risking,’ but creating risks,” Xi told Biden, adding that China is not going to sit back and watch if the U.S. is adamant on containing China’s hi-tech development and depriving China of its legitimate right to development.

Members of a delegation of high school students from the U.S. state of Washington pose for a photo with mascots of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games and the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games, in Beijing, China, March 21, 2024. /Xinhua

China’s door always open

Xi said if the U.S. side is willing to seek mutually beneficial cooperation and share in China’s development dividends, it will always find China’s door open.

The demand for medical services among an aging population in China and the U.S. will increase in the future, and the exchange of medical technology and data will bring huge value to both countries.

China’s ultralarge middle-income population will provide a huge potential market for U.S. agricultural products. In addition, encouraging mutual investment will be helpful to both economies.

A view of the Tesla Gigafactory in Lingang New Area of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone in east China’s Shanghai, September 26, 2023. /Xinhua

It is in the interest of the world for China to succeed, Biden said, adding that the U.S. does not want to curtail China’s development, and does not seek “decoupling” from China.

Biden said the U.S. will send Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Secretary of State Antony Blinken to visit China shortly to strengthen dialogue and communication, avoid miscalculation and promote cooperation, so as to advance the relationship on a stable path and jointly respond to global challenges.

Calling the phone call “candid and constructive,” the two sides agreed to advance the consultation mechanisms on diplomatic, economic, financial, commercial and other issues, as well as mil-to-mil communication, carrying out dialogue and cooperation in such areas as counternarcotics, artificial intelligence and climate response, and taking further steps to expand people-to-people exchanges.

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