No Reason To Ruin US-China Relations, Xi Tells Schumer, Senators Amid Looming APEC Summit

Chinese President Xi Jinping told Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and his delegation in Beijing that the United States and China had many reasons to improve relations, marking a positive stance that raised hopes of the Chinese leader meeting President Joe Biden in November.

There are a thousand reasons to enhance China-U.S. relations, but there was not one reason to break these ties, Xi said in his meeting with Schumer and other senators Monday.

A video of the meeting between Xi and Schumer showed the Chinese president smiling while he spoke to the American delegation. He also smiled as he shook hands with Schumer and other members of the bipartisan delegation.

Chinese state media wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that Xi acknowledged there were "many ups and downs" in U.S.-China relations, "but the overall direction is still moving forward."

Xi also told the senators that relations between the world's biggest economies "will determine the future and destiny of mankind," adding that U.S.-China ties were "the most important bilateral relationship in the world."

For his part in the meeting, Schumer said the two nations, "together, will shape this century," which is why relations should be handled "responsibly and respectfully."

The 80-minute meeting, which exceeded the one-hour schedule, was met with optimism by observers, who said the amicable atmosphere could be Xi's signal of his attendance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in San Francisco next month.

Aside from meeting with Xi, Schumer also met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, wherein the latter said he hoped the senators' visit would help the United States "to more accurately understand China."

Schumer said he informed the Chinese government that Washington was "disappointed" over the Chinese foreign ministry's earlier statement regarding the Palestinian attacks, saying the statement "showed no sympathy or support for Israel" during difficult times.

After Schumer's pressure, it appears China caved in, as its foreign ministry's spokesperson Mao Ning said during a Monday press briefing that Beijing was "deeply saddened by the civilian casualties and oppose and condemn acts that harm civilians." The ministry's previous statement did not mention any condemnation of the attacks and had softer language regarding the hostilities that affected civilians.

Relations between the United States and China have soured in recent years following the Trump administration's tariffs, tech curbs by the Biden government, and Washington's stronger ties with the self-governing island of Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory.

Meanwhile, The Washington Post reported last week that planning was underway for a potential meeting between Biden and Xi during the APEC Summit. Later, Biden clarified that no official meeting had been finalized, but he said a bilateral meeting was still possible. Beijing has yet to confirm Xi's attendance at the conference.

The two leaders last met at a G20 summit in Bali in November 2022, but tensions escalated in recent months between the countries and hopes for bilateral talks were crushed after an alleged Chinese spy balloon was shot down by the U.S. as it flew over sensitive military sites.

In May, the two sides signaled a willingness to move beyond the alleged spy balloon incident to restart talks. Xi's meeting with the top U.S. diplomat Monday has further increased hopes for U.S.-China ties to be on a smoother path moving forward.