New York, Beijing In a nearly two-hour phone call on Friday, US President Joe Biden and Chinese head of state and party leader Xi Jinping exchanged views on Ukraine. According to Chinese state media, Xi appealed to the US President to work together with the People’s Republic for peace in the world. It was the first conversation between the two since November.
According to Chinese media, Xi called for negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. The top priority should be continuing talks and avoiding a humanitarian disaster, Xi said. The Western defense alliance NATO should start talks with Russia to solve the conflicts behind the war.
“The crisis in Ukraine is something we don’t want to see,” Xi said, according to a report by state broadcaster CCTV. As permanent members of the UN Security Council and major world economies, both states should also “take on international responsibilities and make efforts for peace and tranquility in the world.”
The call was the first face-to-face exchange between Biden and Xi since the first “summit” meeting in November. The US had made it clear in advance that they wanted to prevent China from supporting Russia. A statement from the US side on the talks between the two heads of state is not yet available.
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Xi said relations between nation-states should not go so far as to be at war with each other. Conflict and confrontation served nobody’s interests. Peace and security are the riches that the international community should cherish most.
As a permanent member of the UN Security Council and one of the two largest economies in the world, “Not only do we have to get US-China relations on the right track, but we also have to assume our international responsibilities and work for peace and tranquility in the world use,” said Xi.
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The call comes at a time when relations between Washington and Beijing are extremely strained. Trade issues in particular put a strain on the relationship between the two countries. Since taking office as US President, Biden had taken a similarly tough course towards China as his predecessor Donald Trump and, among other things, banned US investments in Chinese companies if they could damage US security interests.
Xi and Biden are old friends
Nevertheless, observers hope that Biden has better access to Xi than Trump. After all, the US President and Xi know each other from when they were both Vice Presidents. Among other things, Biden traveled to Beijing in 2011 as Vice President of Barack Obama for a state visit to Xi.
According to the Chinese side, the call was made on the initiative of the United States follows a meeting between US national security adviser Jake Sullivan and China’s top diplomat Yang Jiechi in Rome on Monday.
The meeting in Rome was the first direct exchange between the two superpowers since war broke out in Ukraine and lasted six hours. Meanwhile, observers were divided as to whether the phone call that was scheduled so soon after the talks in Rome is a good or a bad sign.
In the run-up to the US White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Thursday that the call was about “managing competition between our two countries, as well as Russia’s war against Ukraine and other issues of mutual interest”. should.
China’s head of state maintains a close relationship with the Russian president – much to the concern of the West.
(Photo: AP)
Impatience with China had recently grown in the US government. “We believe that China has a special responsibility to use its influence over President Putin and to defend the international rules and principles it claims to support,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday.
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Instead, China appears to be moving in the opposite direction, refusing to condemn Russia’s war of aggression while presenting itself as a neutral arbiter. “We are concerned that China is considering directly supporting Russia with military equipment for use in Ukraine,” Blinken said.
US threatens China with consequences if it supports Russia
According to Blinken, the US wanted to make it clear in the call that China bears responsibility for any measures it takes in support of Russian aggression. China has so far denied such plans.
Washington also fears that China could help Russia circumvent economic sanctions imposed by Western states. The US would not hesitate to impose costs on China if necessary, Blinken stressed.
So far, the US government has provided no evidence that China supports or plans to support Russia. China’s foreign ministry has described the allegations from the US as disinformation.
The Chinese leadership continues to avoid speaking of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. She describes her stance as neutral. De facto, however, China supports the Russian position, and official statements always refer to Russian security interests.
More on the Ukraine war:
In the UN General Assembly, a large majority of states had condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, while China had abstained. China also condemns Western sanctions against Russia.
However, Chinese leaders and companies have so far been wary of supporting Russia. China’s financial institutions have strictly complied with sanctions imposed by the West, according to an analysis by Alicia García Herrero, chief economist for Asia Pacific at investment bank Natixis.
In addition, China has apparently refused to supply Russian airlines with aircraft parts, Russian news agencies reported last week, citing an official at the Russian aviation authority. Western manufacturers Boeing and Airbus had previously stopped supplying components.
More: US warns China not to help Russia economically or militarily