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Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping engaged in a phone call on Friday, marking a notable interaction ahead of Trump’s expected return to the White House. Both leaders expressed a mutual desire to improve the often-fractious relationship between their countries, agreeing to adopt a forward-looking approach aimed at fostering cooperation
Xi said he hoped for a “good start” to relations with Trump, who in turn said “it is my expectation that we will solve many problems together, and starting immediately.”
Throughout his election campaign, Trump made no secret of his confrontational stance toward China and other US trade partners, threatening to levy hefty tariffs in response to what he described as unfair trade practices. Yet, in an interesting contradiction, Trump has also indicated a willingness to engage in talks with Xi Jinping, whom he has long spoken highly of.
The proposed 10 percent tariff on Chinese goods, which would be added to the existing tariffs imposed during Trump’s first term, is a direct response to China’s role in the opioid crisis. U.S. officials have accused China of permitting the flow of fentanyl’s key chemical components into Mexico, ultimately feeding the deadly drug trade into the U.S. This trade has led to a staggering 70,000 overdose deaths per year, a figure that has propelled the tariff threat as a punitive measure in an ongoing battle against the drug epidemic.
“We discussed balancing Trade, Fentanyl, TikTok, and many other subjects,” Trump said on his social media platform after their call. “President Xi and I will do everything possible to make the World more peaceful and safe!”
Read also: Donald Trump Kick-Starts Moves To End Ukraine, Russian War
The US Congress passed a law last year forcing TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance to either sell the platform or close it by Sunday due to national security concerns, but Trump pledged to save TikTok in his campaign speeches and has been mulling ways to stall the ban.
The law was an answer to widespread belief in Washington that the highly popular app could be used by China for spying or propaganda.
Trump’s impending return to the Oval Office has stirred fears that tensions between the world’s two largest economies could worsen rapidly.
This week Beijing slammed comments by Marco Rubio, Trump’s nominee for secretary of state, as “unwarranted attacks,” after Rubio called China “the most… dangerous near-peer adversary” the United States had ever faced.
“The US side must establish a correct understanding of China, cease unwarranted attacks and smear campaigns against China,” foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said.
In December, Xi said China was willing to engage in dialogue and “expand cooperation” with the United States, but warned that a trade war would have “no winners.”
The Biden administration has largely worked to ease multiple frictions and said that China has taken some action on fentanyl.
In his farewell speech, Biden said that China would “never surpass” the United States, which would remain the world’s dominant superpower
