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Gavin Newsom was granted a surprise audience with China’s leader Xi Jinping when he visited Beijing on Wednesday after being warmly welcomed by other senior leaders of the Chinese Communist Party.
It was a welcome that stood in sharp contrast to the official dialogue between Beijing and Washington in recent years.
Relations between the world’s two largest economies are currently at a low ebb over a host of issues including China’s aggression toward Taiwan, its activities in the South China Sea, trade and human rights.
Despite that, Newsom, the Democratic California governor, said his meeting with Xi had been ‘remarkably positive’.
The 45-minute meeting took place in the palatial Great Hall of the People.Â
Newsom’s appearance on the world stage came as speculation mounted that he could be a potential successor to Joe Biden if the 80-year-old ultimately decides not to accept the Democratic presidential nomination in 2024.Â
The California governor has repeatedly ruled himself out as a candidate.
However, the China visit was the latest profile-raising move by the 56-year-old.
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He has already joined Donald Trump’s Truth Social network to debate conservatives, attended a Republican primary debate to make the Democrat case, and challenged Republican Florida governor Ron DeSantis to a televised debate.
Republicans have blasted Newsom over his week-log trip to China, which is to discuss climate change, and had called on him to cancel it.
They said he should bring up the issues of human rights abuses by Beijing and Chinese fentanyl production.
‘Gov. Newsom’s effort to cozy up to the Chinese Communist Party is delusional,’ Republican congresswoman Michelle Steel said last week.
Newsom is visiting Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and the Guangdong and Jiangsu provinces on the trip.
He said the main reason was that California and China could collaborate on climate change, even if there’s a party change in the White House.
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