China and US promise to cooperate in fight against coronavirus – but how long will it last?
- Xi Jinping and Donald Trump agree to work together to combat Covid-19, but acrimonious relationship between the two sides raises questions about how long a truce can last
- Conversation follows agreement among G20 countries to ‘spare no effort’ to tackle the pandemic
The leaders of China and the United States have promised to cooperate to contain the Covid-19 pandemic but observers have questioned how long this state of affairs will last.
US and Chinese officials, including US President Donald Trump, have been trading barbs for weeks but Trump said on Friday that the two countries were working together closely.
Trump’s Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, said China would support the US but also called on Washington to take concrete steps to push forward cooperation.
The phone conversation between the leaders came after the Group of 20 major economies pledged solidarity to contain the outbreak, which has infected 525,000 people and killed more than 23,600 people worldwide.
However, relations between China and the US have been on a downward trajectory, with each side blaming the other for a slow response to the crisis and US officials referring to the coronavirus that causes the disease as a “Chinese virus”.
Observers said the more positive atmosphere might not last long, citing the other causes of tensions in their relationship and arguing that officials might continue to play the blame game.