The US administration launches a sharp attack on the Chinese president
The United States considered Monday that Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is preparing for a third term, is leading his country in a more “aggressive” direction, at the same time renewing its aspiration to cooperate with Beijing on files of common interests.
On Sunday, Xi praised the policies of the Chinese Communist Party, especially in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, at the start of the party congress, at which participants are expected to ratify his presidency for a third five-year term.
On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that China had become “in recent years completely different under Xi Jinping”.
He referred to “more repressive trends at home, and more aggressiveness abroad,” noting that this matter “in many cases poses a challenge to our interests and values”.
But Blinken stressed the need to delve deeper into the relationships between the world’s two largest economic powers.
He said the world essentially expects the two forces to work together on climate change, global health, and perhaps also drug trafficking.
“We know that we won’t be able to deal with the climate issue as necessary if China isn’t involved” in the efforts, he added.
He said that China “must respond to the demands of countries around the world to be a positive player, not a negative player, in issues of concern” to these countries.
He stressed that global problems “will be more difficult to solve without the involvement of the United States and China”.
Xi is expected to meet his US counterpart Joe Biden on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali next month, in what will be their first meeting since they took over the presidency of their two countries.
