During a meeting with US senators on Monday, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that the US-China relationship “will determine the future of humanity.”
Thucydides Trap
The Chinese president rejected the West’s confrontational mentality and the “Thucydides trap” claim.
The term ‘Thucydides Trap’ is used to describe the apparent tendency of conflict, when an emerging power threatens to replace an existing great power as the regional or international hegemon.
Referring to this, Xi said that “the ‘Thucydides Trap’ is not inevitable, and Planet Earth is vast enough to accommodate the respective development and common prosperity of China and the US.”
In this world of change and chaos, how China and the U.S. get along will determine the future of humanity, Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday told a U.S. congressional delegation led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer in Beijing.
— Zhang Heqing (@zhang_heqing) October 9, 2023
The China-U.S. relationship is the most… pic.twitter.com/0EAHAJ52Hv
“Given the high degree of integration between the Chinese and US economies and their closely entwined interests, both countries stand to benefit from each other’s development,” he added.
Xi further said that global challenges, such as post-pandemic economic recovery and climate change, “all require China-US coordination and cooperation.”
Therefore, as “two major countries,” China and the US should “demonstrate the broadmindedness, vision and readiness to rise to the occasion expected by the international community, and act with a sense of responsibility.”
In order to do this, Xi said, Beijing and Washington will have to “properly handle their relations, respect each other, coexist in peace, and pursue win-win cooperation.”
He concluded by welcoming future visits by US Congress members “to gain a better understanding of China’s past, present and future,” and expressed hope that “the two legislatures will have more interactions, dialogues and exchanges to increase mutual understanding.”
I raised with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Foreign Minister Wang Yi the Hamas atrocities against Israel and the need for the world to stand together against terrorism and with the Israeli people.
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) October 9, 2023
I pointedly asked that they strengthen their statement. They did. pic.twitter.com/TcHHj6FPID
Comments from the US
Noting the global influence of the US-China relationship, delegation leader and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said that the US “does not seek a conflict with China, nor does it seek to decouple.”
He expressed Washington’s willingness to “enhance dialogue and communication” and “responsibly manage the bilateral relationship” with China “based on mutual respect.”
The lawmaker added that the US is also looking forward to “strengthening bilateral trade and investment cooperation with China, and increasing communication and cooperation on such issues as climate change, drug trafficking and regional conflicts.”