China will not begin armed conflict with any nation, President Xi Jinping said after a high-stakes summit with US President Joe Biden on Wednesday .

“China does not seek spheres of influence, and will not fight a cold or hot war with any country,” he told a gathering of business leaders in San Francisco.

China, the world’s second largest economy, has benefitted from the US-dominated global order, he said, adding that good relations between the two countries were vital for both sides.

“I believe that once the door to China-US relations is opened, it will not be closed again,” he said.

Biden and Xi agreed at their summit in California to rejuvenate a relationship that has struggled in recent years and to bolster direct communications between the two men.

Xi said China wanted to continue to improve its ties with Washington and assured his US hosts that his country did not seek confrontation with anyone.

“The great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation cannot be achieved without a peaceful and stable international environment,” Xi said.

“We will never revert to the beaten path of war, colonization, plundering or coercion in pursuing modernization.”