Speaking at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference in California on Wednesday, Chinese president Xi Jinping stressed that bilateral relations with the United States could be “win-win” if the two superpowers “find the right way for the two major countries to get along with each other.”
“It is an objective fact that China and the United States are different in history, culture, social system, and development path. However, as long as they respect each other, coexist in peace, and pursue win-win cooperation, they will be fully capable of rising above differences,” Xi told a delegation of senior American officials, including President Joe Biden.
Before concluding his opening remarks, Xi spoke directly to Biden, thanking him for his “thoughtful arrangement for our meeting today.”
“Mr. President, you and I, we are at the helm of China-U.S. relations. We shoulder heavy responsibilities for the two peoples, for the world, and for history,” the Chinese president said in closing, underscoring the importance of reaching “new understandings with you on strategic and overarching issues critical to the direction of China-U.S. relations and on major issues affecting world peace and development.”
Xi stressed the need for mutual respect and refraining from interfering or seeking to “remodel” one another. “For two large countries like China and the United States, turning their back on each other is not an option. It is unrealistic for one side to remodel the other, and conflict and confrontation has unbearable consequences for both sides,” Xi said.
Biden, who spoke first during the bilateral meeting, pointed to specific areas of global concerns where the United States and China could actively cooperate. “We also have a responsibility to our people and the work — and the world to work together when we see it in our interest to do so. And the critical global challenges we face, from climate change to counternarcotics to artificial intelligence, demand our joint efforts.”
“I value our conversation because I think it’s paramount that you and I understand each other clearly, leader to leader, with no misconceptions or miscommunication,” Biden continued. “We have to ensure that competition does not veer into conflict. And we also have to manage it responsibly — that competition.”
Accompanying the president included Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Secretary of the Treasury Janey Yellen, Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs Jake Sullivan, Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, and the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink.
After the large meeting concluded on Wednesday afternoon after two hours of speeches, Presidents Biden and Xi retired to a closed-door session with a small group of officials.