All but two key figures in the delegation wore masks as the presidents held face-to-face diplomacy as aides and advisers watched from long draped tables in the ballroom of the palatial resort Mulia. emphasize the importance of He expressed his desire to get the US-China relationship back on track.
“The world looks to the United States and China to play a key role and work together on global challenges ranging from climate change to food insecurity,” Biden said in his opening remarks. “The United States is ready to do just that.”
Afterwards, President Xi Jinping said, “Sino-US relations are currently facing a situation that does not meet the expectations of the two countries, the two peoples and the international community. must be directed to
As reporters were ushered out of the room, a TV producer called out and asked Mr. Biden if he would raise human rights issues during the meeting. A man on the Chinese side pulled the producer backwards with his backpack, causing her to lose her balance, but she did not fall. Two White House staffers then stepped in and said the producers should be left alone.
In Bali for the G20 summit, each leader came to the table with renewed courage. Xi tightened control, securing his third five-year term in office, which defied norms, and consolidating power to a degree not seen since the days of Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping. Biden just finished the midterm elections and his party has far outperformed expectations and will retain a majority in the Senate.
Since the Democrats won last week’s midterm elections, White House officials have been overjoyed, with foreign leaders approaching Biden to comment on his new domestic wins, leading major states and districts. and they do not represent democracy.
Biden’s meeting with Xi came on the third day of Biden’s domination of Asia. He arrived in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Saturday for summit meetings with Southeast Asian nations. There, the US aim was to unite them to counter the growing economic and military threat posed by China.
US-China talks begin After 5:30 p.m. local time It can extend for hours. The plan is for simultaneous interpreting, and U.S. officials often use it as a way to facilitate dialogue so that each leader does not have to wait for the other to complete before beginning translation. I liked it.
The face-to-face is the result of months of quiet negotiations in which diplomats laid the groundwork for negotiations. Senior Biden administration officials insisted these discussions were an improvement in interaction between the two countries, even though they had kept their hopes of a breakthrough thanks to the meeting low. Biden and Xi Jinping have had five phone calls since Biden took office, but have not met in person since 2017.
A joint statement is not expected at the end of the meeting, which is typical when both sides want to indicate progress and areas of agreement. A White House official previously said he did not expect any major announcements.
Instead, they cast the moment as the beginning of a long process, one of unraveling a relationship so strained that even talks about issues of mutual interest, such as climate change, sometimes become closed. Officials are aware that the United States is in “hard competition” with China, and Mr. Biden said he “accepts it,” but continued efforts are needed to defuse the conflict. dialogue will be important, he said.
“Communication lines should be open. Period, completely shut down,” a senior government official said before the meeting. “The only thing worse than a contentious conversation is not having it at all.”
One area the two will discuss is economic competition. Biden has maintained the tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, which impose restrictions on the sale of semiconductors and chip-making equipment to China.
“He said that competition is limited, that we are developing guardrails, that we have clear rules for the roads, and that we do all of that to make sure competition doesn’t turn into confrontation. We want to ensure anonymity terms for previewing talks.
Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen said she met with reporters hours before the Biden-Xi Jinping meeting and expected the conversation to include the situation in China and the global economy.
After decades of rapid growth, China’s economy has slowed significantly this year. Repeated lockdowns under Xi’s draconian “no coronavirus” policy and the heavily indebted real estate sector, which accounts for his fifth of the economy, are the main drivers. The International Monetary Fund said last month that the country’s annual growth rate he expects will be 3.2% this year, compared with more than 8% in 2021.
“First and foremost, today’s meeting aims to stabilize U.S.-China relations and create a more certain atmosphere so that U.S. businesses can understand what to expect,” Yellen said.
The Treasury Secretary reiterated the over-reliance of U.S. companies on China as a source of critical products, including minerals needed to produce batteries for electric vehicles. But she suggested that much of the $600 billion a year trade flow between the two countries should continue.
“We want a safer and more resilient supply chain. It’s not what it is,” she said.
Biden also planned to raise long-standing issues the US has with China’s human rights record. After visiting the autonomous islands, they strongly disagreed over Taiwan. Xi Jinping asked Biden to find a way to block her visit. In the aftermath of her visit, China suspended talks with the United States on various other issues.
Danny Russell, a former diplomat who advised Biden in past meetings with Xi and now deputy director of the Asia Society Policy Institute, said: They seem to want to lower the temperature of their relationship.”
“Washington is mindful of the risk that an unintended incident could quickly escalate into a crisis,” Russell added. “Beijing is trying to avoid re-punishing US measures like recent export controls on semiconductors.”
China, who attended the meeting, said it wanted to get ties back on track and prevent differences from escalating into conflict. But the two sides have very different ideas about how to establish guardrails, said Chen Dongxiao, director of the Shanghai Institute of International Affairs, a think tank.
“China defines the ‘floor’ from a strategic and political perspective, which is basically to prevent the United States from repeatedly threatening or undermining China’s core interests.”
The White House is notable that Xi first warned against the use of nuclear weapons in Russia’s war against Ukraine when he met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz last week. It was seen as a clear signal to Putin.
“I think Beijing is genuinely displeased with what we’ve seen regarding the reckless rhetoric and activities on the part of Russia.” I don’t think you can.”
The meeting was held at the Mulia Resort, where the Chinese and Russian delegations are staying. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was not present when Mr. Biden and Mr. Xi Jinping arrived by motorcade.
Earlier in the day, Russian officials dismissed claims that Lavrov had been taken to hospital after falling ill as a “fake high.”
In the hours leading up to the high-profile meeting, groups of Russian and Chinese delegations roamed around Mulia’s grand lobby, affording majestic views of palm trees lining the sea. The 526-room five-star resort was nearly empty to accommodate the G20 delegation, according to the report.
Multiple bars and restaurants within the resort were quiet except for waiters wearing masks and face shields. was
As the sun began to set at 5 p.m., media swarmed the hotel entrance as Mr. Biden and Mr. Xi Jinping arrived. The two leaders were escorted by security guards into the ballroom where the talks took place.
The Biden-Xi Jinping meeting is a kind of recombination of the relationship that developed more than a decade ago.
At one point, during a tour of a school in Los Angeles, they each displayed a white T-shirt that read, “Promote goodwill between America and China.” was in English.
Christian Shepherd reported from Taipei. David Lynch and Rebecca Tan of Nusa Dua contributed to this report.
