U.S. Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday arrived in Beijing for a two-day official visit to China. [Photo/CRI]

 

The major talk, of course, took place between Xi Jinping and Joe Biden, who struck up a personal rapport when they traveled together last year. A U.S. source said the talks lasted five and half hours. The two leaders agreed to move forward, as the groundwork for the relations had been laid earlier.

In June when Xi met with Obama in California, they agreed to establish a new type of great power relationship and avoid the "Thucydides trap" – the belief that war is likely when an established power meets a rising power. They agreed to avoid conflict and confrontation, and cooperate to achieve win-win results.

In his talk with Biden, Xi stressed that the world is undergoing complex changes, and that it is not tranquil. China and the U.S., as the world's major economies and two permanent members of UNSC, share the responsibility to maintain world peace and stability and promote development. Xi called for the two sides to respect each other's core interests and major concerns.

He proposed that both sides maintain high-level strategic communication, promote the development of mechanisms such as the China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue, high-level consultations on people-to-people exchanges and maintain close military exchanges.

As trade serves as an engine driving Sino-U.S. relations forward, Xi suggested that both sides expand cooperation in trade, infrastructure, urbanization and food security.

The American Vice President said he was impressed by China's decision to deepen reforms approved by the Third Plenum of 18th CPC Central Committee.

Biden indicated that the U.S. would work with China to improve mechanisms, maintain dialogues and exchanges, increase substantive cooperation, step up military exchanges, manage differences in a constructive manner and prevent differences from affecting the overall pattern of relations.

The author is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit: http://www.h5a3.com/opinion/zhaojinglun.htm

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