President Xi Jinping said China and the United States have agreed to work towards building a bilateral relationship of "constructive strategic stability" in his meeting with visiting US President Donald Trump on Thursday.

The new characterisation will provide strategic guidance for bilateral relations over the next three years and beyond, and should be welcomed by the people of both countries as well as the international community, Xi said during the talks at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing that lasted for more than two hours.

The "constructive strategic stability" should be a positive stability with cooperation as the mainstay, a sound stability with moderate competition, a constant stability with manageable differences, and an enduring stability with promises of peace, Xi said.

The building of a constructive China-US relationship of strategic stability should not be a mere slogan, but concrete action taken by both sides towards the same goal, he added.

"I look forward to working together with you to set the course and steer the giant ship of China-US relations, so as to make 2026 a historic, landmark year that opens up a new chapter in China-US relations," Xi said.

Meanwhile, Xi said bilateral economic ties are mutually beneficial and win-win in nature, and that negotiations between the two countries on Wednesday reached "overall balanced and positive outcomes".

The negotiations had aimed to maintain the trade truce struck last October and establish mechanisms to support future trade and investment, officials with knowledge of the matter said.

Xi and Trump also discussed a range of key regional and international issues, including the situation in the Middle East, Ukraine and the Korean Peninsula.

After the meeting, the two leaders visited the Temple of Heaven in Beijing. (Xinhua & agencies)



Edited by Edmond Fong