BEIJING – China said it has a consistent policy towards the United States, as President-elect Donald Trump gets ready for a second term after an election victory that is likely to portend greater unpredictability for bilateral ties as well as regional trade and security.

Asked how the election result could affect ties, China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a regular media briefing on Nov 6: “We will continue to view and handle China-US relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation.”

The US and China, as strategic competitors, have clashed on a wide range of issues, from trade to technology to national security. Most observers did not expect a significant improvement in ties, regardless of who took the White House.

Dr William Choong, a senior fellow at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, believes that for China, Vice-President Kamala Harris is the lesser of two evils.

“The fear among Chinese analysts… is that Trump is prone to unilateralism and could lead to an acceleration of trade and tech decoupling between the two major economies,” he said in an analysis for The Straits Times.

Elsewhere, treaty allies and others in Asia said they look forward to working with Trump, even as greater uncertainty lies ahead, with the President-elect seen as offering a more transactional approach towards security partnerships.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who sent a congratulatory letter to Trump, said: “I would like to offer my heartfelt congratulations to Mr Trump on his victory, and also express my respect for the democratic choice of the people of the US.

“I would like to work closely with Mr Trump to elevate the Japan-US alliance and Japan-US relations to even greater heights,” he told reporters on Nov 6.

In a congratulatory statement, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said the bilateral partnership is a durable one to which Manila is fully committed because it is founded on shared ideals of freedom and democracy.

“I have personally met President Trump as a young man, so I know that his robust leadership will result in a better future for all of us,” he wrote on Instagram.