Xi Jinping’s chief of staff urges business mogul to boost US-China ties at ‘critical crossroads’

Cai Qi, China’s No 5 official, holds rare meeting with influential American businessman John Thornton in Beijing
Wall Street veteran Thornton, who was granted unprecedented access to China during Covid, says he will continue to work for Sino-American friendship

US-China relations

Laura Zhou

Published: 9:00pm, 12 Apr 2024

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Chinese President Xi Jinping’s chief of staff held a rare meeting with influential American businessman John Thornton in Beijing on Friday, urging him to use his influence to boost friendly exchanges between the two countries.

In the meeting, Cai Qi, the secretary of the Secretariat of the Chinese Communist Party and the fifth-ranking member of the powerful Politburo Standing Committee, also expressed his hope that Thornton would continue to exert influence to improve “exchanges and friendship” between the two countries, according to a brief statement by the Chinese foreign ministry.

“China-US relations are at a critical crossroads, and to continue to stabilise and improve, the two sides must implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state and find the right way for the two countries to get along in line with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation,” said Cai, a Xi protégé who also heads the General Office of the Communist Party Central Committee, one of the most powerful offices in China.

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In response, Thornton, a co-chair of the Asia Society, said he was willing to “continue to play a role in advancing the cause of US-China friendship and enhancing the American public’s comprehensive understanding of China”, according to the ministry.

Thornton, executive chairman of Barrick Gold Corp and a former Goldman Sachs president, is among the best-connected US business leaders in China and has served as a powerful backchannel for the two countries.

In 2021, when China was in a nationwide lockdown and ties with the US were at a low point, Thornton made a six-week trip to China. During the trip, he was given unusual access to Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, where Beijing has been accused by Western countries of committing genocide against the Uygur ethnic minority group – claims Beijing denies.

At that time, Thornton was also received by senior Chinese officials, including then vice-premier Han Zheng, during which the two sides discussed issues including climate change, Xinjiang and conditions for resuming talks.

He was also among a group of American CEOs and scholars hosted by Xi at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in late March. That meeting was widely considered an attempt by Beijing to ease anxieties over its investment environment and slowing economy.

In January 2020, Thornton was among the people then US president Donald Trump thanked at the signing of the phase-one trade deal between Washington and Beijing.

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Friday’s meeting came days after a long-anticipated phone call between Xi and Biden, their first since their November summit in California.

The two powers are seeking to manage tensions amid a rivalry over trade, technology, human rights and a host of other issues.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen visited China last week, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to travel to China in the coming weeks.