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Excerpt: A Chinese presidential envoy has met with Vance and Musk to hold discussions on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration.
China’s Vice President Han Zheng met with US Vice President-elect J.D. Vance and prominent business leaders, including Elon Musk, in Washington on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration.
The meetings aimed to address ongoing tensions between the two nations over trade, technology, and regional stability.
Representing Chinese President Xi Jinping at the inauguration, Han discussed topics such as fentanyl, trade balance, and regional conflicts with Vance, according to the Trump transition team.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry’s readout of the meeting highlighted Han’s emphasis on the “extensive common interests and significant opportunities for cooperation” between the US and China, despite ongoing “disagreements and frictions.”
Trump, set to begin his second term, has signalled plans to impose tariffs and other measures against China. However, he also indicated potential areas for collaboration, including curbing fentanyl exports and resolving regional disputes.
Notably, Trump invited Xi to the inauguration, a first for a US president, though Xi declined to attend. The two leaders held a phone call on Friday, discussing trade, fentanyl, and TikTok.
TikTok, which briefly went offline in the US following a federal ban, restored service on Sunday. Trump announced plans to pause the ban through an executive order on Monday.
In addition to his meeting with Vance, Han engaged with Musk and other top US business figures, including representatives from the US-China Business Council and the US Chamber of Commerce. He reiterated commitments to improving the business environment for foreign companies in China and expressed hopes for continued US investment.
After the meeting, Musk, whose Tesla factory operates in Shanghai, criticised the TikTok ban in a post on his platform X, arguing it
“goes against freedom of speech.” He added, “The current situation where TikTok operates in America but X is banned in China is unbalanced. Something needs to change.”
X remains banned in China, alongside other major US platforms like YouTube, Google, Facebook, and many US news outlets.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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