Handle disputes with 'dialogue and cooperation': Xi Jinping at U.N. General Assembly meet

His comments came hours after U.S. President Joe Biden said he didn't have any intention of starting a “new Cold War"

September 22, 2021 01:40 am | Updated 03:15 am IST - NEW YORK

China's President Xi Jinping remotely addresses the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly in a pre-recorded message on September 21, 2021, at UN headquarters. Photo: Special Arrangement

China's President Xi Jinping remotely addresses the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly in a pre-recorded message on September 21, 2021, at UN headquarters. Photo: Special Arrangement

Facing growing tensions with the United States, Chinese leader Xi Jinping reiterated his nation's longtime policy of multilateralism on Tuesday, telling world leaders at the United Nations that disputes among countries “need to be handled through dialogue and cooperation."

His comments came hours after U.S. President Joe Biden said he didn't have any intention of starting a “new Cold War" — itself a response to criticism from the U.N. chief that both Washington and Beijing need to make sure their differences and tensions don't derail their 42-year-old relationship.

"One country’s success does not have to mean another country’s failure," Mr. Xi said in a prerecorded speech. "The world is big enough to accommodate common development and progress of all countries."

The comments from leaders of the two major powers, the world's most formidable economies, appeared to represent efforts to calm the waters after U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres admonished them over the weekend for putting confrontation over productive dialogue.

China often preaches multilateralism, though its critics say its policies toward Taiwan and in South China Sea territorial disputes strongly indicate otherwise. Without mentioning the United States directly, he said “military intervention from the outside and so-called democratic transformation entail nothing but harm.”

“The world is big enough to accommodate common development and progress of all countries. We need to pursue dialogue and inclusiveness over confrontation and exclusion," he said.

The very presence of Mr. Xi’s speech was unexpected. Earlier schedules of U.N. speakers indicated a deputy Chinese premier would give an address Friday afternoon. The decision to slot in the country's supreme leader moved him up to Tuesday's first-day slate, hours after Mr. Biden's remarks.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.