Trump and China speak on prospects for US-China cooperation

China's top diplomat said on Tuesday that he hoped the new administration of US President-elect Donald Trump would "make the right choice" and work with Beijing, hours after Trump told reporters that the COVID-19 pandemic had complicated his relationship with his "friend" Chinese President Xi Jinping, UNN reports citing Reuters.

Details

"We hope that the new US administration will make the right choices and work with China in a mutually beneficial way to resolve the disruptions and overcome the obstacles," Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a forum in Beijing, according to a statement from his ministry.

These remarks came after President-elect Trump said at his first press conference after winning the election six weeks ago that Chinese President Xi Jinping was his friend and that "he's an amazing guy," but that the relationship was tense.

"We had a very good relationship before 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 it was too big a bridge for me.

"China and the United States can solve all the problems of the world together, if you think about it," Trump said. - "So it's very important, and he was my friend.

At the same time, Trump has appointed hardliners to key diplomatic and economic positions in his administration, making it clear that his policy toward the United States' main strategic rival may be even more confrontational than during his first term.

Republican Senator Marco Rubio, whom Trump has chosen to be the next Secretary of State, is under sanctions imposed by China in 2020. It is unclear how the main China hawk in the Senate will interact with Beijing in light of the sanctions.

China is also ready to keep pace with the Trump administration, the publication notes.

Wang told the delegates that Beijing "strongly opposes the illegal and unreasonable suppression of China by the United States, and in particular, should firmly and resolutely respond to the United States' blatant interference in China's internal affairs, such as Taiwan.

The two superpowers are laying out their positions ahead of Trump's return to the White House. His first term resulted in a trade war that disrupted global supply chains and hurt almost every economy as inflation and borrowing costs soared, the publication points out.

Addendum

When Joe Biden was sworn in as US President in January 2021, China said it wanted to cooperate with the new administration and imposed sanctions on former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and 27 other senior officials who had previously worked under Trump.

Trump has made it clear that he plans to pick up where he left off with Beijing and has promised to impose an additional 10% tariff on Chinese goods to push China to do more to stem the flow of fentanyl to the United States.

He has also previously promised to end China's most favored nation status and impose tariffs on Chinese imports of more than 60% - much higher than those imposed during his first term.

In response, China is seeking to build up its bargaining chips to start talks with the new US administration on contentious aspects of bilateral ties, including trade and investment, as well as science and technology, analysts say.

At the same time, the January 20, 2021, statement on China's sanctions against 28 former Trump officials cannot be found on the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs website. Asked to comment on the situation at a regular press conference on Tuesday, spokesman Lin Jian said he had no information to provide.