Don't suppress China's development, Xi tells Biden
President Xi Jinping told his US counterpart Joe Biden in a phone call on Tuesday that while Sino-US ties are beginning to stabilise, both sides also need to pay attention to “negative factors” that have been growing in the relationship, according to Xinhua News Agency. It quoted the president as saying that measures by Washington to “suppress China's trade and technology development, are not ‘de-risking,’ but creating risks.” Xinhua said while President Xi said China’s door will always be open if the US is willing to seek mutually beneficial cooperation, “if it is adamant on containing China's high-tech development and depriving China of its legitimate right to development, China is not going to sit back and watch.” Xinhua also quoted Xi as saying that China and the United States should not cut ties or turn their back on each other, much less slide into conflict or confrontation. It said the president stressed the need for both sides to strengthen dialogue in a mutually respectful way, manage differences prudently, advance cooperation, and step up coordination on international affairs. Xinhua also said Xi stated that the Taiwan issue is a “red line” that must not be crossed, and that China would not “sit on its hands” in the face of separatist activities and external support for them. A readout from the White House said Biden had in turn emphasised the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, while characterising the talks as “candid and constructive”. The press release also said the leaders exchanged views on issues ranging from counternarcotics cooperation to climate change and military-to-military communication. It added that both sides welcomed ongoing efforts to maintain open channels of communication and manage their relationship through high-level diplomacy and working-level consultation, including during upcoming visits by US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. This was the first conversation between the two leaders since a historic in-person summit in California in November.