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BEIJING (BLOOMBERG, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE) – China congratulated Joe Biden and Kamala Harris on winning the November 3 US presidential election, ending days of speculation about when Beijing would formally acknowledge victory.
“We have been following the reaction in this US presidential election both within the United States and the international community,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a regular press conference in Beijing on Friday ( November 13).
“We respect the choice of the American people and extend our congratulations to Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris.”
China’s recognition came when US networks said that Biden, who leads by more than five million in the popular vote, consolidated his victory Thursday night by winning Arizona, one of the battle states where the president had sought to reverse. the elections.
China was previously among a handful of major countries, including Russia and Mexico, that had not congratulated the president-elect, and Beijing simply commented earlier this week that it had “noticed that Mr.
Biden declared that he is the winner ”, as Trump questioned the results.
“We understand that the outcome of the US presidential election will be determined by following US laws and procedures,” Wang said.
Beijing’s official reaction to Biden’s victory had been relatively quiet.
President Xi Jinping has offered no public congratulations, while the Foreign Ministry this week gave largely vague responses in a briefing on Monday, saying he hoped the new administration “will work in the same direction as us in the future. “.
President Trump has repeatedly claimed that elections have been hampered by fraud, and on Thursday he retweeted an unsubstantiated claim that an electoral equipment manufacturer “knocked out” 2.7 million votes for him nationwide.
US election officials said there is no evidence of compromised votes or corrupt voting systems in US elections.
US-CHINA TENSIONS
Trump’s four years in the White House have been marked by mounting tensions as he described China as the greatest threat to the United States and global democracy, and the two sides argued on topics from handling the Covid-19 pandemic to China’s technology and human rights record.
The two fought a forceful trade war over U.S. demands, including greater access to China’s markets, a sweeping reform of a commercial playing field that largely favors Chinese companies, and a relaxation of tight control. state by Beijing.
In January, an agreement was signed between the two, bringing a partial truce that forced Beijing to import an additional $ 200 billion (Singaporean $ 270 billion) in US products over two years, ranging from cars to machinery and from oil to agricultural products.
Trump has also targeted Chinese tech companies he says pose security threats, including video-sharing app TikTok, owned by Chinese parent company Bytedance, and mobile giant Huawei.
But, it is far from certain that relations will improve under the Biden administration, with the outspoken Democrat during his campaign on China’s dismal human rights record.
During a Democratic Party primary debate in February, Biden called Chinese President Xi a “bully.” His presidential campaign has also referred to the crackdown on the Uighur Muslim minority in China’s Xinjiang region as “genocide,” a campaign that Beijing advocates as vocational training to counter the threat of terrorism.
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