China, EU warns Trump against isolationism

Chinese state media has warned the US president-elect against isolationism and interventionism, calling instead for the United States to actively work with China to maintain the international status quo.

President-elect Donald Trump threatened to tear up trade deals and pursue a more unilateral foreign policy under his "America First" principle during a tempestuous election campaign.

Trump often targeted China in the campaign, blaming Beijing for US job losses and vowing to impose 45 percent tariffs on Chinese imports. The Republican also promised to call China a currency manipulator on his first day in office.

US isolationist policies had "accelerated the country's economic crisis" during the Great Depression, warned a commentary by China's official Xinhua News Agency, though it added that "election talk is just election talk".

The commentary also cautioned against any tilt towards intervention.

Hillary Clinton was widely seen in China as the more hawkish of the two candidates, while some Chinese commentators saw Trump as a potential pragmatist on foreign policy.

Meanwhile, the EU's top leaders on Wednesday invited Donald Trump to a summit as soon as possible as they warned of uncertainty in relations and a need to respect democratic values.

"I do not believe that any country today can be great in isolation," European Council chief Donald Tusk told reporters in Brussels, referring to Trump's campaign slogan of "Make America Great Again".

"Europe and the United States simply have no option but to cooperate as closely as possible."

Tusk and European Commission boss Jean-Claude Juncker said in a letter that they wanted to discuss "unprecedented challenges" including the Islamic State jihadist group, the conflict in Ukraine, and a troubled EU-US trade deal under negotiation.

Following Trump's victory, EU foreign ministers will hold a special meeting in Brussels on Sunday at the invitation of the bloc's foreign policy supremo Federica Mogherini.

Separately Martin Schulz, the head of the European Parliament, urged Trump to show "responsibility" after a divisive campaign, adding that he had "managed to become the standard-bearer of the angst and fears of millions of Americans."