Trump speaks by telephone with Xi Jinping before his inauguration

US President-elect Donald Trump held a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday, just hours after China announced plans to send Vice President Han Zheng to attend Trump's inauguration ceremony on Monday .

In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump described the call as a very good call for the United States and China and said the two discussed issues such as balancing trade , fentanyl, TikTok and many other topics.

“I expect that we will solve many problems together and starting now,” Trump wrote in his message. “President Xi and I will do everything possible to make the world more peaceful and secure!”

Chinese state media said Xi congratulated Trump on his election victory during the call and that he and the president-elect had high aspirations for the development of U.S.-China relations over the four next years.

We both attach great importance to our interactions with each other, we both hope that U.S.-China relations will get a good start during the new term of the U.S. President, and we are both willing to advance China-US relations to make greater progress from a new starting point, Xi said in a statement released by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

Xi said that while there will be differences between Beijing and Washington, the key is to “respect each other's core interests and major concerns and find an appropriate solution to the problem.”

Xi urged Trump to handle the Taiwan issue with caution. Beijing says democratic Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force if necessary to unify the island with China.

According to the Chinese statement, Xi and Trump also exchanged views on the war in Ukraine, the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, as well as other major international and regional issues.

Earlier on Friday, China's Foreign Ministry announced Chinese Vice President Han Zheng's decision to represent Xi at the inauguration.

The announcement comes more than a month after Trump invited President Xi and other foreign leaders to attend his inauguration. This is an unprecedented decision that marks a break with tradition, since foreign ambassadors historically attend presidential inaugurations. (https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-invites-china-s-xi-other-world-leaders-to-his-inauguration/7899021.html)

Analysts say Beijing is showing goodwill toward the new Trump administration by sending Han.

China does not have an established tradition of letting the president attend the inauguration ceremonies of other heads of state, said Zhou Bo, a senior researcher at the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University in China. Beijing.

Sending the vice president to attend Trump's inauguration ceremony is the best option and it shows Beijing's goodwill toward President-elect Trump, he told VOA by telephone.

As Beijing attempts to respond positively to Trump's invitation, other experts say Hans' presence will remain largely ceremonial.

I don't expect anything concrete from Hans' trip to Washington, said Zhiqun Zhu, an expert on Chinese foreign policy at Bucknell University in the US state of Pennsylvania.

Despite the ceremonial nature of Hans' participation in the inauguration, Zhu said Beijing's move could still lay a good foundation for U.S.-China relations under the second Trump administration.

Hopefully, a friendly atmosphere will be created and can be maintained in the coming weeks and months, so that when the two sides sit down to discuss substantive issues, perhaps an agreement could be reached, he said. -he declared by telephone to VOA.

Trump's return to the White House has created uncertainty for China, which has faced a persistent economic slowdown in recent years.

During his presidential campaign, Trump pledged to impose tariffs of up to 60% on Chinese goods. Zhou said the possibility of high tariffs had made Beijing cautious about the prospects for U.S.-China relations under the second Trump administration.

We don't know how Trump will play his cards, so I think China will wait and see how its policy towards him plays out, he told VOA.

Although he threatened to impose tariffs on Chinese imports, Trump said the two could maintain a good relationship and that he was in contact with Chinese leaders through representatives.

And I think we'll probably get along very well, I predict, he said during an interview with conservative talk show host Hugh Hewitt on Jan. 6, adding that the relationship was meant to be a two-way street. .

Additionally, Trump wants to nominate several politicians known for their hawkish stances on China, including Sen. Marco Rubio as secretary of state and Rep. Mike Waltz as House national security adviser. White.

Rubio, during his Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday, described China as the most powerful and dangerous near-peer adversary this nation has ever faced.

They contain elements that the Soviet Union never possessed. They are a technological adversary and competitor, an industrial competitor, an economic competitor, a geopolitical competitor, a scientific competitor, he said.

Despite Rubio's seemingly tough rhetoric on China during the hearing, Zhu said it was too early to tell whether that language would translate into real policies toward China in the new administration.

“Some of the Trump appointees seem hawkish on China, but because they work for Trump, I don't think they will override Trump's policies,” he told VOA.

Zhu said that as it remains unclear how Trump will shape his China policy, Washington and Beijing will tread carefully.

Both sides had a terrible experience during Trump's first term, so it appears they want to start from scratch this time, he said.