China News Service, March 20 (Reporter Meng Xiangjun) On the evening of March 18, Beijing time, President Xi Jinping had a video call with U.S. President Joe Biden at request. The two heads of state were candid on issues of common concern such as Sino-U.S. relations and the situation in Ukraine. In-depth exchange of views.
"A key call at a critical moment", several experts and scholars pointed out in an interview with Chinanews.com that the call between the two heads of state has set an important tone for the stable development of China-US relations, managing differences, and avoiding misjudgment. Efforts have been made to promote the resolution of regional hotspot issues, strengthen communication, and release multiple signals to the world.
On the evening of March 18, Chinese President Xi Jinping held a video call with US President Joe Biden in Beijing at the request of the president.
Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Huang Jingwen
Background timing matters
This call, which occurred on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Nixon's visit to China and the publication of the "Shanghai Communiqué", is the second call between the leaders of China and the United States since November 2021.
During the call, U.S. President Biden said that today, 50 years later, U.S.-China relations are once again at a critical moment, and how the U.S.-China relationship develops will shape the world pattern in the 21st century.
Biden reiterated:
The United States does not seek a "new cold war" with China;
not seeking to change the Chinese system;
Do not seek to strengthen alliances against China;
Does not support "Taiwan independence";
No conflict with China.
Wang Huiyao, chairman of the Think Tank for Globalization (CCG), believes that this call is another in-depth communication between the two heads of state after four months. It lasted nearly two hours and was very meaningful.
During the call, the U.S. side reiterated its "four nonsense and unintentional" position on China. Biden's mention of the 50th anniversary of the publication of the "Shanghai Communiqué" was a sign of attaching importance to the relationship between the two countries.
Professor Li Haidong of the Institute of International Relations of China Foreign Affairs University pointed out that from the perspective of China, it is also necessary to conduct new exchanges and communication with the United States on many issues of Sino-US relations under the new situation.
Professor Chen Dingding, Dean of Haiguo Tuzhi Research Institute and School of International Relations, Jinan University, also said that the call occurred in two major contexts: First, because of the Taiwan issue, etc., there is a need for communication and dialogue channels between China and the United States; Second, as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has brought about dramatic changes in the entire international situation, the call between the two sides has become more urgent and necessary.
Therefore, this is a "critical call at a critical moment." Chen Dingding pointed out that it is very important for China and the United States to strengthen mutual understanding and communication and avoid misjudging the situation.
Release multiple important signals
According to the report after the meeting between China and the United States, Chen Dingding further analyzed that the effect of this call "should be good" and released at least three signals to the outside world:
1. During the call, the heads of state of the two sides set an important tone for the stable development and continuous communication of China-US relations, that is, to manage the relations and competition between China and the US well and prevent the relationship from declining.
2. Judging from the media reports on this call, there are many positive aspects, and the overall atmosphere is relatively peaceful.
Chen Dingding believes that the two sides will continue to communicate through this (video call) mechanism.
The high-level diplomatic dialogue between China and the US will be held in Rome, and the dialogue at all levels will be stable and continuous, which will be a good sign.
3. This call shows that China and the United States are willing to communicate and make joint efforts on hot events and important affairs of global concern.
This information will be passed on to other countries, so that the world can see the cooperation and coordination between the two countries, and it will also encourage more countries and regional institutions to participate in the mediation.
On the evening of March 18, Chinese President Xi Jinping held a video call with US President Joe Biden in Beijing at the request of the president.
Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Bin
The key to Sino-US relations lies in two points
In this call, "controlling differences" and "stable development" became the "keywords" mentioned by the Chinese and US leaders.
Li Haidong pointed out that there is no doubt that Sino-US relations are now at a critical turning point. The direction of the US policy towards China is very clear, and it is necessary to engage in strategic competition with China; while the direction of China's policy towards the US cannot be defined by competition. bilateral relationship.
The U.S. idea may eventually lead to a complete breakdown of Sino-U.S. relations, while the Chinese idea is to hope that all countries in the world will join hands to jointly promote the process of global economic integration and the common affairs of all countries.
On the Taiwan issue, Biden reiterated this time that he "adheres to the one-China principle" and does not support "Taiwan independence." Xi Jinping pointed out that it is very dangerous for some people in the United States to send wrong signals to the "Taiwan independence" forces.
If the Taiwan issue is not handled properly, it will have a subversive impact on the relationship between the two countries.
Chen Dingding analyzed that some people in the US have misjudged China's development and the global situation.
The Chinese side re-emphasizes the importance of the Taiwan issue because it is worried that some people in the United States may take advantage of international changes and chaos to "fish in troubled waters" to strengthen so-called support for Taiwan, such as arms sales and attempts to enhance its international status.
China is mainly to remind some people not to misjudge the situation and China's strategic intentions.
During the call, President Xi Jinping also pointed out to Biden that the direct reason for the current situation in China-US relations is that some people in the US did not implement the important consensus reached by the two of us, nor did they implement Mr. President's positive remarks. .
In this regard, Chen Dingding analyzed that in the process of political decision-making, some statements of the US head of state may become "empty promises", which is an internal problem of the US government.
Li Haidong further pointed out that this made the US policy toward China appear swaying and uncertain.
However, Li Haidong also emphasized that the diplomatic leadership of the leaders of China and the United States is the foundation for the stability of China-US relations over the past four or five decades.
The role of the exchange of heads of state in Sino-US relations cannot be replaced by other channels.
For some issues between China and the United States, such as which ones need to be resolved, which ones need to be put on hold, and which ones need to be managed and controlled, etc., there will be some basic adjustments at the head of state level.
China showcases its image as a responsible major country
The situation in Ukraine was another focus of the call.
Wang Huiyao noted that President Xi pointed out in the call that, as a permanent member of the UN Security Council and the world's two largest economies, we must not only lead the development of China-US relations on the right track, but also undertake due international responsibilities and serve efforts for world peace and tranquility.
Wang Huiyao believes that China has sent a signal to the world, that is, it emphasizes that China and the United States are obliged to assume their due responsibilities as major powers and need to play their due roles to facilitate the resolution of the Russia-Ukraine crisis.
China's emphasis on relying on the Charter of the United Nations and promoting the peace plan from the perspective of the United Nations and multilateral diplomacy is a very good angle.
Chen Dingding pointed out that there are historical reasons for the development of the situation in Ukraine to the present.
In the past 20 years, some politicians and scholars in the United States and the West have made judgments and issued warnings, believing that the eastward expansion of NATO to Ukraine will definitely trigger a violent counterattack by Russia.
However, some Western governments and leading institutions can be said to be obsessed, which eventually led to today's situation.
Li Haidong also pointed out that on the surface, the current situation is the intensification of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the crisis in Ukraine, but at a deeper level, it is the unresolved contradiction between Russia, the United States and NATO, which is showing a breakdown.
For the past 30 years, the United States has led NATO to marginalize and humiliate Russia, excluding it from the process of European national strategic autonomy, creating Europe's biggest security dilemma, and trying to make other countries bear the consequences.
This irresponsible approach is seriously incompatible with the demeanor that a superpower should have.
Therefore, Li Haidong pointed out that it is also necessary for China to put forward to the United States a correct view of the problems in the construction of the European security structure, and urge it to take responsibility.
Who is really encouraging peace and talks?
President Xi also pointed out during the call that the implementation of all-round and indiscriminate sanctions will still suffer the common people, and may also trigger a global crisis.
He proposed two possible paths for easing the situation in Ukraine in the near and long term: the most urgent task is to continue negotiations and cease fire and end the war at an early date; the long-term solution lies in mutual respect among major powers, abandoning the Cold War mentality, and gradually building a balanced, effective and sustainable global and regional security architecture.
Chen Dingding analyzed that China's position on promoting peace and talks is very clear, but the most critical and fundamental issue is that Europe needs to reshape its security architecture in the medium and long term.
This requires all parties to sit down and discuss carefully and carefully, and consider how to take into account the respective security needs of Russia and Europe.
Chen Dingding also believes that the US and European sanctions against Russia are ineffective and violate international law. They do nothing to ease the situation, but add fuel to the fire.
There are many inconsistencies in the words and deeds of the U.S. dialect. Whether it really wants to mediate is still in doubt.
Li Haidong pointed out that, in fact, it can be seen from the way China and the United States resolve the Ukraine issue, who is really encouraging peace and talks and really hope for a safe return.
The protracted crisis in Ukraine will lead to a deeper disorder in the world, and even the United States will not be the beneficiary.
The political decision-making of the United States has been kidnapped by its own political elites, who always consider themselves to be the arbiters and masters of international affairs. But looking at the many countries that the United States sanctioned during and after the Cold War, which one solved the problem?
Therefore, Li Haidong pointed out that sanctions are not the solution to the problem, and this method is both lack of innovation and destructive.
Frankly speaking, the biggest threat and destabilizing factor in current international affairs is precisely the American political elite.
(over)