China pledges $3 billion to fight climate change

As the two leaders spoke, dozens of pro- and anti-Xi protesters gathered near the White House grounds, waving flags, beating drums and shouting slogans.

According to USA Today, during the meeting between Obama and Xi, an agreement was also made to reach a “common vision” regarding climate change during a conference held in December in Paris.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said the commitments showed the resolve of the world’s largest developing and developed economies to realize their domestic climate goals.

He noted the United States has “various tools” to go after cyberthieves, including the new sanctions power, which he said he made clear to Xi.

Xi, for his part, reiterated that Beijing does not support commercial cybertheft, though said he understands the USA concerns and will “take seriously” any information the United States brings to its attention about such hacking.

Mr Obama said he had “candid” discussions with Mr Xi on disputes in the Asia Pacific, specifically focusing on the growing South China Sea tensions.

China and the USA have reached important consensus on the joint fight against cyber crimes, visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping said, stressing bilateral dialogue and cooperation on cyber issues, the media reported on Saturday.

But despite what he described as “significant progress”, including the establishment of a high-level joint dialogue mechanism, Mr Obama said he would not rule out invoking sanctions if violations persisted.

That includes trade secrets or other confidential business information that could provide either countries’ companies or commercial sectors with competitive advantages.

Jeremie Waterman, executive director for China at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said he hoped the agreement “marks a new chapter” and leads to real progress.

“Both sides are committed to making common effort to further identify and promote appropriate norms of state behavior in cyberspace within the global community”, the White House says.

Human rights is another field China obstinately refuses to see eye-to-eye with the rest of the world, and is unlikely to give in anytime soon.

Senior US officials said the Obama administration had been preparing a package of sanctions in recent weeks aimed at China and other nations over cyberthefts of intellectual property.

China is willing to join hands with the USA to improve their relationship and push it forward on the right track, Chinese President Xi Jinping said here on Friday.

Xi said China welcomes the active participation of all concerned parties, including the United States, in China-proposed initiatives like the Belt and Road and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, adding that they are open, transparent and inclusive.

The two countries also announced other, broader agreements about cybersecurity.

The leaders promised to help each other investigate and prevent cyberattacks and pledged not to commit cyberespionage or support the theft of trade secrets.

Speaking at the news conference on Friday (local time), Mr Xi said he and Mr Obama agreed to step up prosecutions and co-operate on investigations of cybercrime, including creating a hotline between officials in the two countries.

Obama reaffirmed the One-China policy, saying a stable, prosperous and peaceful China will play a constructive role in global affairs.