President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will meet at the G20 summit next week for their first face-to-face meeting of the Biden presidency.
The two leaders will meet on Nov. 14 in Bali, Indonesia, the White House said Thursday.
“Leaders will discuss efforts to maintain and deepen lines of communication between the United States and the PRC, manage competition responsibly, and cooperate where our interests align, particularly on transnational challenges arising from impacts on the international community,” the White House said. -press secretary Karine Jean. -Pierre said in a statement on Thursday. “The two leaders will also discuss a range of regional and global issues.”
The meeting comes at a time when US-China relations are at one of their lowest points in decades and government officials have been careful to keep expectations low.
“I don’t think the two leaders will sit down and be able to resolve all their differences or issues,” a senior government official told reporters at a briefing. “But I think we think some of those steps along the way can be important.”
President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will meet next week at the G20 summit in Bali, their first face-to-face meeting of the Biden presidency.
The two men met when each was vice president of his country. And previous face-to-face meetings have been postponed because Xi has not traveled outside China during the Covid pandemic.
However, the two men have held five talks since Biden took office.
Next week’s meeting comes after the president attended a climate conference in Egypt and stopped in Cambodia, where he will speak with leaders of Southeast Asian countries.
“President Biden has made it a priority to keep lines of communication open with President Xi to ensure responsible competition between our two countries. And he believes there is no channel more important than that between the leaders of the United States and China,” national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Thursday during a White House news conference.
“The meeting between President Biden and President Xi will be an in-depth and substantive opportunity to better understand each other’s priorities and intentions to address differences and identify areas where we can work together. Because it is in our interest to work together to solve common problems and because the world expects it,” he added.
The president is focused on countering China’s economic influence in the Indo-Pacific region and will focus on building US relations with other countries in the region.
Biden’s priorities for his meeting with Xi include building their relationship, raising concerns about Taiwan, discussing human rights and combating harmful economic practices emanating from Beijing, a senior administration official said during a briefing with reporters. said.
But no “results” are expected, the White House was quick to note. The session will instead focus on relationship building and clearer communication.
The official said the White House expects the meeting to be a “substantive and in-depth discussion” between the two leaders, but does not expect significant progress on key issues.
The session was described as “building a floor” in US-China relations.
The two leaders will not make a joint statement after the meeting, which is usually protocol.
The official also said Biden would be “honest” about a number of “concerns,” including longstanding human rights issues. The US accuses China of genocide against the Muslim minority in the western province of Xinjiang.
The official noted that Biden would not make “fundamental concessions” on US aid to Taiwan.
They will also discuss the war between North Korea and Russia in Ukraine.
Both heads of state and government entered the meeting with a strong political tailwind. Biden’s Democratic Party fared significantly better than expected in Tuesday’s midterm elections. And Xi was appointed by the Chinese Communist Party for an unprecedented third term.
Joe Biden and Xi Jinping in Los Angeles in February 2012, when each man was his country’s vice president
President Biden and President had five phone calls in November 2021, including the above
At his press conference Wednesday, Biden was asked about his meeting with Xi and what he hoped to gain from it.
“I am not prepared to make concessions in principle,” he said. “I told him: I’m looking for competition – not conflict.”
When asked specifically if he would tell Xi that he was determined to defend Taiwan, Biden replied, “I will have this conversation with him.”
As part of its “One China” policy, the United States recognizes the government in Beijing while allowing informal and defensive ties with Taipei.
It takes a stance of “strategic ambiguity” about Taiwan’s defenses – leaving open the question of whether it would respond militarily if the island was attacked.
Biden has promised in the past to use the US military to defend the island against a Chinese invasion.
The issue is one of the most contentious between Biden and Xi.
Tensions between Washington DC and Beijing rose when Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the island earlier this year.
China has made it clear they want her there and threatened retaliation if she visits.
China has broken off talks with the US on a number of key issues – including the economy and climate change – following its interruption.
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