The Chinese President sent a message congratulating Mr. Trump on his election as president, calling for harmony between the US and China and strengthening dialogue instead of confrontation. “President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory message to President-elect Donald Trump,” Chinese central television station CCTV reported today, but did not specify when the congratulations were sent. Mr. Xi expressed to Mr. Trump that the two countries must “harmonize and strengthen dialogue, properly resolve differences, expand mutually beneficial cooperation, and find the right way to harmonize in the new era, bringing benefits the two countries and the world.” “President Xi Jinping pointed out that history shows that China and the US benefit from cooperation and suffer losses from confrontation,” CCTV added. “The stable, healthy and sustainable China-US relationship benefits both countries and is in line with the expectations of the international community.”

Mr. Trump was elected president after winning a series of battleground states, defeating his Democratic opponent Kamala Harris. He is the first US president in a century to serve two non-consecutive terms. In a speech to his supporters early on the morning of November 6, Mr. Trump declared that he “made history”. In addition to Mr. Xi, many world leaders have also posted messages or called to congratulate Mr. Trump. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol said that in his phone call with the US President-elect, the two sides agreed to meet “in the near future”, possibly this year.