(VOVWORLD) - China and the United States agreed on Monday to try to stabilise their intense rivalry to avoid veering into conflict.
President Xi Jinping meets Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, June 19, 2023. (Photo: Leah Millis/AFP) |
Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed "progress" after shaking hands with visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
"The common interests of the two countries should be valued, and their respective success is an opportunity instead of a threat to each other," Xi said.
The two countries should act with a sense of responsibility for history, for the people and for the world, and handle China-US relations properly, Xi noted, adding that in this way, they may contribute to global peace and development, and help make the world, which is changing and turbulent, more stable, certain and constructive.
Xi stressed that major-country competition does not represent the trend of the times, still less can it solve America's own problems or the challenges facing the world.
Blinken, the first holder of his post to meet the Chinese leader since 2018, said the two countries "have an obligation and responsibility" to manage their relationship and that the United States was "committed to doing that".
Xi told Blinken China "hopes to see a sound and steady China-US relationship" and believes that the two countries "can overcome various difficulties."
It had been hoped the roughly 30-minute meeting could help facilitate a summit between Xi and US President Joe Biden later in the year.