Chinese President Xi Jinping congratulated President-elect Joe Biden for winning the U.S. election Wednesday, according to state media outlet Xinhua, after weeks of holding off as one of the only major world leaders not to acknowledge the Democrat’s victory.
While China’s foreign ministry offered brief congratulations to Biden on November 13, Xi has demurred, as President Donald Trump has engaged in an ultimately fruitless legal campaign to overturn the results of the election.
In the message to Biden, Xi said that “promoting the healthy and stable development of China-US relations” is in the interests of both parties and the expectation of the international community.