Photo : AP / Yonhap
Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasized coexistence between China and the United States during his summit with U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday, invoking the concept of the “Thucydides trap,” which suggests that conflict can arise between a rising power and an established power.
According to China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency, Xi said stable China-U.S. relations would benefit the world and that major powers should pursue the path of coexistence.
Xi reportedly said that whether the two countries can overcome the Thucydides trap and establish a new model of relations between major powers is a historic question that the leaders of both nations need to answer together.
He also stressed that the two sides should pursue cooperation rather than a trade war, saying there are no winners in trade conflicts and that bilateral economic ties are based on mutual benefits and win-win cooperation.
At the same time, Xi warned Trump that Taiwan is the “most important issue” in bilateral relations and said mishandling the matter could push the two superpowers into conflict.