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

Reading Time:2 minutes

American businessman John Thornton (left) meets Cai Qi, a Politburo Standing Committee member, in Beijing on Friday. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 9:00pm, 12 Apr 2024

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.

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.

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

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