Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on Friday, hours before President-elect Donald Trump risked straining relations with Beijing in a telephone call with the president of Taiwan.
"The presidential election has taken place in the United States and we are now in the key moment," Xi told Kissinger in front of reporters, Business Insider reports. "We, on the Chinese side, are watching the situation very closely.
"Now it is in the transition period.
"Overall, we hope to see the China-U.S. relationship moving ahead in a sustained and stable manner," Xi said.
Kissinger, 93, whose visit appeared to be unrelated to Trump's call with President Tsai Ing-wen, told Xi that he appreciated the meeting. He helped lay the foundation for former President Richard Nixon's visit to China in 1972.
Trump and Kissinger met two weeks ago at Trump Tower in New York, where the conversation focused on relations with China, according to transition officials.
In a summary of Trump's phone call on Friday released by the transition team, President Tsai "offered her congratulations.
"During the discussion, they noted the close economic, political, and security ties exists between Taiwan and the United States."
Trump's call broke nearly 40 years of U.S. policy barring formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan because of the country's "rouge nation" status with China.
Neither Washington nor Beijing revealed why Kissinger visited China, Business Insider reports.
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