US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping had their first direct phone conversation since meeting on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting in San Francisco, USA.
The White House and Chinese Foreign Ministry both described the call as “candid and constructive.” The two discussed a range of bilateral, regional and global issues, including counter-narcotics cooperation, resuming military-to-military communications, addressing risks related to artificial intelligence (AI), climate change and people-to-people exchanges.
Meanwhile, Xinhua News Agency reported that Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasized that the summit with the US President in San Francisco in November 2023 opened up a “vision for the future”. The Sino-US relationship is beginning to stabilize, which is welcomed by the international community. However, Xi Jinping also pointed out many “negative factors” that are growing in the bilateral relationship, requiring attention from both sides. According to the Chinese President, the issue of strategic awareness has always been the foundation of the Sino-US relationship. Two major countries like China and the US “should not sever relations, turn their backs on each other, and even less should they fall into conflict and confrontation”. The Chinese leader affirmed that the two countries need to respect each other, coexist peacefully and cooperate for mutual benefit. The relationship should continue to move forward in a stable, healthy and sustainable manner. President Xi Jinping also mentioned three overarching principles that will guide US-China relations in 2024: valuing peace, prioritizing stability, and preserving prestige.
Also during the phone call, the two US and Chinese leaders discussed the conflict situation in Ukraine, the Korean Peninsula and a number of other developments in the region.
On the same day, the US Treasury Department said that Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will return to China this week to continue economic dialogue with top Beijing officials. According to the plan, Ms. Yellen's visit to China will take place from April 3-9.
In addition, according to a US official, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun will also soon hold a phone call.