China’s premier, Li Qiang, the country’s second-highest-ranking official, made a spirited effort at the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Friday to shore up Beijing’s image on the global stage and contrast it with the disruptive policies of the Trump administration.
Mr. Li portrayed his country as a bulwark against the erosion of the values upon which the United Nations was founded and a force for global cooperation and multilateralism. “China has all along acted as a staunch defender of world peace and security,” he said.
“A major cause of the current global economic doldrums is the rise in unilateral and protectionist measures such as tariff hikes,” Mr. Li said, an apparent reference to the trade policies of the United States under Mr. Trump. By contrast, China had “consistently opened its door wider to the world,” he said.
Mr. Li’s comments and other efforts at the United Nations this week — including China’s first detailed public pledge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions — have continued Beijing’s effort to cast China as a leader of global institutions at a time of American retreat under Mr. Trump.
China has tried to seize on the unpopularity of America’s trade policy and U.S. support for Israel to drive a wedge between Washington and the rest of the world.
Beijing assigns great importance to the United Nations because the country wields major influence by holding one of five permanent seats on the Security Council. Beijing has often used that influence to marshal support from developing nations to cast votes in the U.N. General Assembly that align with its interests.
This week, Mr. Li met with the U.N. secretary general, António Guterres, and called on developing countries to “jointly oppose bullying and hegemony.” Mr. Li also met on the sidelines of the meeting with Bill Gates, the tech billionaire and philanthropist, and asked him to help deepen cooperation between China and the United States.
Relations between Beijing and Washington have stabilized since the powers became locked in a bitter trade war this year. President Trump and China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, held a phone call last week, and Mr. Trump said they had agreed to meet next month on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju, South Korea.
On Tuesday, Mr. Li said China would no longer claim trade benefits as a developing nation at the World Trade Organization. The decision, analysts said, was aimed at casting China as a champion of fair trade at a time when the Trump administration was undermining the global trading system with tariffs.
A day later, at a U.N. climate summit, Mr. Xi announced over video link a detailed target for cutting greenhouse gas emissions from China’s huge economy. By contrast, Mr. Trump used his address to the General Assembly on Monday to rail against climate science as a “con job” that was “made by stupid people.”
On global politics, Mr. Li cast China as a force for peace and cooperation, citing Beijing’s support for peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, as well as Israel and Palestinians. China has long supported an independent Palestinian state based on the borders set before the Arab-Israeli war of 1967, when Israel defeated a coalition of Arab states.
China has been a close ally of Russia since it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Earlier this month, Mr. Xi signaled that Beijing would continue to align itself with Moscow on issues of shared interest after a meeting with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia.
David Pierson covers Chinese foreign policy and China’s economic and cultural engagement with the world. He has been a journalist for more than two decades.
Meaghan Tobin covers business and tech stories in Asia with a focus on China and is based in Taipei.
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