Xi, Trump hold phone conversation on Argentina consensus

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Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday held a telephone conversation, and expressed their willingness to push for implementation of the agreements they reached during the G20 summit in Argentina.

Trump wished Xi and the Chinese people a happy new year, saying that U.S.-China relations are very important and closely followed by the whole world.

He said he values the great relations with Xi, adding that he is pleased to see the teams of both countries are working hard to implement the important consensus reached between him and Xi during their meeting in Argentina.

Trump said relevant talks and coordination are producing positive progress and hopes results will be reached.

Xi, for his part, extended best wishes to Trump and the U.S. people upon the arrival of the new year.

Xi said both he and Trump hope to push for stable progress of China-U.S. relations, adding that bilateral ties are now in a vital stage.

The Chinese president said he and Trump had a very successful meeting earlier this month and reached an important consensus in Argentina.

Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks during a working dinner with his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump in Buenos Aires, Argentina, December 1, 2018. /Xinhua‍

Since the meeting, teams from both countries have been actively working to implement the consensus, he said, expressing hopes that both teams can meet each other halfway and reach an agreement beneficial to both countries and the world as early as possible.

Xi said next year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the United States and China, adding that China attaches great importance to the development of bilateral relations and appreciates the willingness of the U.S. side to develop cooperative and constructive bilateral relations.

China is willing to work with the United States to summarize the experience of 40 years of the development of China-U.S. relations, and strengthen exchanges and cooperation in fields of economy and trade, military, law enforcement, anti-drug operations, local issues, and culture, Xi said.

Xi added that China is also willing to work with the United States to maintain communication and coordination on major international and regional issues, respect each country's important interests, promote China-U.S. relations based on coordination, cooperation, and stability, and let the development of bilateral relations better benefit the two peoples and people around the world.

The two heads of state also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concern such as the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Xi reiterated that China encourages and supports further talks between the United States and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, and hopes for positive results.

'Enhance strategic mutual trust'

Following the telephone conversation held by Xi and Trump, Lu Kang, spokesman for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, issued a statement on Sunday, saying the two countries should cherish the progress made over the four decades and also learn lessons from it.

"Both sides should adhere to rational and objective views of each other's strategic intentions and strengthen strategic communication, enhance strategic mutual trust, and prevent strategic misjudgment."

The two countries will celebrate 40 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties on Tuesday. "At this moment, Beijing and Washington should improve strategic mutual trust and prevent strategic misjudgment," Lu stressed.

China-U.S. trade grown 232 times in four decades

China and the U.S. have made historic developments over the past 40 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries.

In trade and investment area, bilateral trade volume has surged from less than 2.5 billion 40 years ago to over 580 billion U.S. dollars in 2017. In terms of investment, the two countries barely invested in each other in 1979 while by 2017, the amount of investment reached to some 230 billion U.S. dollars.

As for personnel exchanges, exchanges between the two countries increased to 5.3 million by 2017, compared with only a few thousand 40 years ago.

Regarding international cooperation, the two sides have conducted close cooperation in areas ranging from counter-terrorism, financial crisis to global economic recovery.

"All facts have proven that the historic development of China-U.S. not only benefit two peoples, but also facilitate the peace, stability and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region and the globe as a whole," said Lu.

(With inputs from Xinhua)