Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said he hopes Donald Trump's incoming administration will “make the right decision” and increase cooperation with Beijing in a mutually beneficial manner.
China's top diplomat said Tuesday that he hopes Donald Trump's incoming administration will “make the right decision” and work with Beijing, hours after Trump told reporters that the COVID-19 pandemic had strained his relationship with his ” friend” Xi Jinping.
“We hope the new US administration will make the right decision and work with China in a mutually beneficial manner to eliminate disruptions and overcome obstacles,” Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a forum in Beijing, according to a statement from his ministry.
The remarks came after President-elect Trump said in his first news conference since his election victory six weeks ago that Chinese President Xi Jinping had been a friend of his and that “he's an amazing guy,” but that relations They had been tense.
“We had a very good relationship until COVID,” Trump told reporters gathered at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Monday when asked if Xi would attend his inauguration. “COVID didn't end the relationship, but for me it was too big an obstacle.”
The two superpowers have been setting their positions regarding the former president's return to the White House. Trump's first term led to a trade war that disrupted global supply chains and hurt nearly every economy as inflation and borrowing costs soared.
Trump has indicated that he plans to pick up where he left off with Beijing and has promised to impose an additional tariff of 10% on Chinese products to pressure China to do more to stop fentanyl flows to the United States.
He also promised to end China's most favored country status — which allows it to receive the same advantages as the country that receives better treatment from the United States — and to apply tariffs on Chinese imports of more than 60%, much higher than the taxes during his first term.
In response, China is trying to accumulate negotiating elements to start talks with a new US administration on contentious aspects of bilateral ties, such as trade and investment, and science and technology, according to analysts.
“China and the United States can solve all the world's problems together, if you think about it,” Trump said. “So it's very important and (Xi Jinping) was a friend of mine.”
That said, Trump has appointed China hardliners to key diplomatic and economic positions in his Administration, indicating that his policy toward the United States' main strategic rival could be even more confrontational than during his first term.