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China pays tribute to former US president Jimmy Carter, ‘promoter’ of diplomatic ties

Human rights champion welcomed Deng Xiaoping to White House in landmark 1979 trip capping official diplomatic ties between Beijing and Washington

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Former US president Jimmy Carter (left) greets Deng Xiaoping outside the Oval Office of the White House on January 28, 1979. Photo: AP
Kawala Xiein Hong KongandMark Magnierin New York
China has expressed its condolences over the death of former US president Jimmy Carter, who established formal diplomatic relations with Beijing and welcomed China’s paramount leader Deng Xiaoping to the White House.
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Carter died on Sunday aged 100. He had been in hospice care since February 2023.

“Our founder, former US President Jimmy Carter, passed away this afternoon in Plains, Georgia,” the Carter Centre said in a social media post about his death. The centre added in a statement that he died peacefully, surrounded by his family.

“My father was a hero, not only to me but to everyone who believes in peace,” Chip Carter, the former president’s son, added in a statement. “The world is our family because of the way he brought people together, and we thank you for honouring his memory by continuing to live these shared beliefs.”

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Former US president Jimmy Carter, ‘an old friend’ of China, dies at the age of 100

Former US president Jimmy Carter, ‘an old friend’ of China, dies at the age of 100

Tributes poured in from around the world.

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“Today, America and the world lost an extraordinary leader, statesman and humanitarian,” said US President Joe Biden, who was the first senator to endorse Carter for the presidency in 1976.

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