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BEIJING, Nov.9 (Reuters): China, which has refrained from congratulating the winner of the US presidential election, Joe Biden, even as leaders of other countries have, said on Monday it would follow custom in responding to the result.
Democrat Biden won enough states to win the presidency, but incumbent President Donald Trump has not relented and is legally challenging the outcome of the November 3 election.
“We note that Mr. Biden has declared electoral victory,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a daily press conference. “We understand that the outcome of the US presidential election will be determined by following US laws and procedures.”
In 2016, Chinese President Xi Jinping sent congratulations to Trump on November 9, the day after the election.
Relations between China and the United States are at their worst in decades due to disputes ranging from technology and trade to Hong Kong and the coronavirus, and the Trump administration has unleashed a barrage of sanctions against Beijing.
While Biden is expected to take a tough stance on China, calling President Xi Jinping a “bully” and vowing to lead a campaign to “pressure, isolate and punish China,” he is likely to take a more measured and multilateral stance. Getting closer.
“We always believe that China and the United States should improve communication and dialogue, manage differences on the basis of mutual respect, expand cooperation on the basis of mutual benefit, and promote the sound and stable development of bilateral relations,” said Wang at the briefing.
Hu Xijin, editor of the Global times, a tabloid published by the People’s Daily of the ruling Communist Party, said in a tweet: “China has not congratulated Biden on his victory as quickly as Western countries did.”
“I think it is because China needs to maintain a greater distance from the US presidential elections to avoid getting entangled in its controversy. This actually shows that China respects the United States as a whole,” he added.
Earlier on Monday, Chinese state media took an upbeat tone in editorials, saying that relations could be restored to a state of greater predictability, starting with trade.
While acknowledging that Washington is unlikely to ease pressure on China over issues like Xinjiang and Hong Kong, the Global Times said Beijing should work to communicate with Biden’s team.
“It is in the common interest of the people of both countries and the international community that the relations between China and the United States become easier and more controllable,” he said.
The China Daily said it was “obvious” that improving ties with China could start from trade, and reviving trade talks was critical to restoring some understanding and trust.
Wang Huiyao, director of the Center for China and Globalization and an adviser to the government in Beijing, said he expects more dialogue under the Biden administration.
“Biden’s election represents an opportunity to restore relations with the United States, as he is more likely to defend multilateralism. That means that China and the United States can begin to discuss issues such as climate change, pandemic control and trade. “Wang told Reuters.
On Weibo, similar to Twitter in China, top trending items included the hashtags “# BidenSpeaksToTheWholeCountry #”, viewed 1.21 billion times, and “#Trump will lose special Twitter protections in January #”. – Reuters
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