Xi Jinping urges G20 to protect trade system as showdown with Donald Trump looms
- The Chinese president called for the ‘urgent’ maintenance and development of an open world economy and vowed China would help hold the G20 together
- He did not mention America or the trade war, but his remarks come a day before he is to meet with the US president to discuss a possible ceasefire
Chinese President Xi Jinping called on the G20 nations to resist protectionism and maintain a multilateral trade system, one day before a high-stakes working dinner with US President Donald Trump that could see the two men halting or even ending their trade war.
In his speech to the G20 leaders’ summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Friday, Xi said the world economy was at a historic crossroads and urged the global major economies to “demonstrate courage” to put world economy “on the right track”.
“Five years ago, when I first attended the G20 leaders’ summit, I called for the maintenance and development of an open world economy,” Xi said, according to a transcript of his speech. “Now, this task is even more urgent” because trade protectionist measures were on the rise and the 2018 global commodity trade turnover was expected to shrink, he said.
The speech marked the latest effort by Xi to paint China as a defender of the global trade system at a time when Washington is accusing the country of engaging in unfair trade practices, stealing trade secrets, and subsidising state-owned enterprises at the cost of other countries.
In addition to the speech, Xi and the leaders of major developing economies Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa also called for open international trade and a strengthening of the World Trade Organisation.