UN chief calls for U.S.-China negotiation over trade, technology

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called for dialogue and negotiation between the United States and China over trade and technology to avoid the polarization of the world market and economy.

Asked to comment on Washington's years-old technology dispute with China, Guterres said he has always advocated for the need for a unified global market and a unified global economy.

"I've been, many times, saying that we need to avoid at all costs the division of the world into two, each with its own economic system and set of rules, each with its own dominant currency, each with its own internet, and each with its own technological strategy and artificial intelligence and in other aspects," he told a press briefing.

Guterres called on the world's two largest economies to find common ground over trade and technology through dialogue and negotiation to avoid such a scenario.

"Now, it is clear that, at the present moment, there are a number of differences," he said. "I've been advocating, both with U.S. and with China, on the importance of a serious dialogue and a serious negotiation."