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Chinese President Xi Jinping called Bill Gates “an old friend” and said he hoped they could cooperate in a way that would benefit both China and the United States, in Xi’s first meeting with a foreign entrepreneur in years.
In a meeting at Beijing’s Diaoyutai state guest house, where China’s leaders have traditionally received senior foreign visitors, Xi said he was very happy to see the Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist after three years, and that Gates was the first American friend he had met this year.
“I often say the foundation of U.S.-China relations lies with its people. I place my hopes on the American people,” a video published by state broadcaster CCTV showed Xi as saying.
“With the current global situation, we can carry out various activities beneficial to our two countries and people, activities that benefit humanity as a whole,” he said.
Gates, who arrived in Beijing on Wednesday, said he was “honoured” to have the chance to meet. “We’ve always had great conversations and we’ll have lot of important topics to discuss today … it’s very exciting to be back.”
In a post on his personal blog, Gates said he and Xi had discussed global health and development challenges such as health inequity and climate change.
