Obama and Xi Look Forward to Developing a New Relationship and Agreeing about North Korea
At the conclusion of talks between U.S. and Chinese Presidents Barack Obama and Xi Jinping on Saturday, the White House announced that the two countries had reached an agreement on the issues of North Korea and the environment. They stressed that Beijing “took note” of Washington’s concern in the area of information security.
One of Obama’s advisors said that the talks between the U.S. president and his Chinese counterpart lasted a total of about eight hours between Friday and Saturday in the Sunnylands resort in Rancho Mirage, about 160 kilometers east of Los Angeles in California.
The two leaders differed on ways to deal with the rise of China on the world’s stage 40 years after former President Richard Nixon’s visit to Communist China in 1972 ended decades of hostility between Washington and Beijing.
While Obama said that he wanted to allow the rise of a peaceful China, the two countries’ outlooks concerning northern trade issues, human rights and military intentions did not match.
Obama pointed out “a whole range of challenges on which we have to cooperate, from North Korea's nuclear and missile programs to proliferation to issues like climate change."
Washington saw that the duration and format of these consultations was far from the usual ceremony, an issue of great importance, and the two presidents expressed hope on Friday that these unofficial meetings would form the beginning of a “new model” of bilateral relations.
Obama and Xi wandered around Saturday in plain clothes and in a free atmosphere for nearly an hour, with only their translators accompanying them, according to the White House. Obama then presented the Chinese president with a wooden chair to sit on.
As for the content, National Security Advisor Tom Donilon has said that President Xi took note of U.S. concern in the field of information security, after which Obama confirmed that this issue was foundational and would form an obstacle in the path to developing a new relationship between the countries if it persisted.
Washington has spoken of large-scale computer attacks originating on Chinese soil and aimed at the theft of sensitive government data and data linked to industrial secrets.
Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi, the country’s top foreign affairs official, stressed that Beijing opposed all forms of cyber attacks.
In the wake of Xi’s remarks in California on Saturday, he told reporters, "China itself is also a victim of cyberattacks.”
Obama found himself compelled to defend the state of information security in his country, as his administration faces criticism after the disclosure of an intelligence program aimed at gathering private information in the name of combating terrorism.
Regarding North Korea and its ballistic and nuclear program, Donilon stressed that Presidents Obama and Xi are in “full agreement on the goals” surrounding this issue and stressed the “denuclearization” of the Korean peninsula.
These statements came hours before the resumption of talks between North Korea and South Korea, after months of acute tension.
Beijing, which was an essential ally to Pyongyang, expressed its dissatisfaction with North Korea.
Yang said that the two sides did not hesitate to discuss their differences. As was revealed, the Chinese president asked that the U.S. stop selling arms to Taiwan and reiterated his country’s claim to the South China Sea. He promised at the same time to search for a peaceful solution.
The only statement that was published after the talks highlighted the agreement on the need for joint efforts to combat climate change, especially by targeting hydrocarbon and industrial gases, which are major causes of heat retention.
Before the end of the meetings Saturday morning, Xi and Obama partook in tea with the Chinese president’s wife, Peng Liyuan, who enjoys great popularity.
One of Obama’s advisors said that the talks between the U.S. president and his Chinese counterpart lasted a total of about eight hours between Friday and Saturday in the Sunnylands resort in Rancho Mirage, about 160 kilometers east of Los Angeles in California.
The two leaders differed on ways to deal with the rise of China on the world’s stage 40 years after former President Richard Nixon’s visit to Communist China in 1972 ended decades of hostility between Washington and Beijing.
While Obama said that he wanted to allow the rise of a peaceful China, the two countries’ outlooks concerning northern trade issues, human rights and military intentions did not match.
Obama pointed out “a whole range of challenges on which we have to cooperate, from North Korea's nuclear and missile programs to proliferation to issues like climate change."
Washington saw that the duration and format of these consultations was far from the usual ceremony, an issue of great importance, and the two presidents expressed hope on Friday that these unofficial meetings would form the beginning of a “new model” of bilateral relations.
Obama and Xi wandered around Saturday in plain clothes and in a free atmosphere for nearly an hour, with only their translators accompanying them, according to the White House. Obama then presented the Chinese president with a wooden chair to sit on.
As for the content, National Security Advisor Tom Donilon has said that President Xi took note of U.S. concern in the field of information security, after which Obama confirmed that this issue was foundational and would form an obstacle in the path to developing a new relationship between the countries if it persisted.
Washington has spoken of large-scale computer attacks originating on Chinese soil and aimed at the theft of sensitive government data and data linked to industrial secrets.
Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi, the country’s top foreign affairs official, stressed that Beijing opposed all forms of cyber attacks.
In the wake of Xi’s remarks in California on Saturday, he told reporters, "China itself is also a victim of cyberattacks.”
Obama found himself compelled to defend the state of information security in his country, as his administration faces criticism after the disclosure of an intelligence program aimed at gathering private information in the name of combating terrorism.
Regarding North Korea and its ballistic and nuclear program, Donilon stressed that Presidents Obama and Xi are in “full agreement on the goals” surrounding this issue and stressed the “denuclearization” of the Korean peninsula.
These statements came hours before the resumption of talks between North Korea and South Korea, after months of acute tension.
Beijing, which was an essential ally to Pyongyang, expressed its dissatisfaction with North Korea.
Yang said that the two sides did not hesitate to discuss their differences. As was revealed, the Chinese president asked that the U.S. stop selling arms to Taiwan and reiterated his country’s claim to the South China Sea. He promised at the same time to search for a peaceful solution.
The only statement that was published after the talks highlighted the agreement on the need for joint efforts to combat climate change, especially by targeting hydrocarbon and industrial gases, which are major causes of heat retention.
Before the end of the meetings Saturday morning, Xi and Obama partook in tea with the Chinese president’s wife, Peng Liyuan, who enjoys great popularity.