China strikes conciliatory tone ahead of expected Trump-Xi meeting

BEIJING — The U.S. and China can still find ways to work together, Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao told reporters Friday, ahead of an expected meeting between the presidents of both countries on Oct. 30.

“General Secretary Xi Jinping has stressed that dialogue and cooperation are the only right choice for China and the U.S.,” Wang said in Mandarin, translated by CNBC. “China, as a responsible big nation, has always opposed decoupling and ‘breaking the chain,’ [while] adhering to global supply chain security and safety.”

Wang said that both sides can find ways to address the issues they have with each other “on the basis of mutual respect.” The two countries, he added, can “find the right path for getting along, for the healthy, stable and sustainable development of China-U.S. relations.”

While China has not yet officially confirmed a meeting, the White House said overnight that U.S. President Donald Trump and Xi are expected to meet on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea next Thursday.

Beijing has said Vice Minister He Lifeng would travel to Malaysia from Friday to Monday for trade talks with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

Commerce Minister Wang was speaking Friday during a press conference following the “Fourth Plenum,” a high-level meeting to discuss five-year development goals, which ended Thursday.

At the same press briefing, Han Wenxiu, a senior official within the Central Committee of the ruling Communist Party, said China must “strive to achieve major breakthroughs” in new tech drivers, while promoting consumption and accelerating the construction of a new energy system.

“Relations between big countries influence the international situation, and changes in the international situation deeply impact China’s domestic development,” said Han, who is the executive deputy director of the central committee’s financial and economic affairs office.