diplomacy
First conversation in a year: Biden meets Xi
Joe Biden (l.) welcomes China’s President Xi Jinping. photo
© Doug Mills/The New York Times/AP/dpa
The relationship between Washington and Beijing has long been very tense. Now there is a first meeting and a personal exchange.
The relationship between the USA and China has long been very tense. Biden and Xi have not seen each other in person or spoken since the G20 summit in Bali in November 2022. There have been various meetings and discussions between high-ranking government representatives from both sides in recent months, but no direct exchange between the two presidents.
The two heads of state met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in San Francisco. However, Biden received Xi at a separate location, in a tranquil setting, 45 kilometers from San Francisco. The two wanted to take several hours there to talk in detail about a whole range of topics and points of contention. Biden wanted to give a press conference after the meeting on Thursday night in Germany – alone.
The US side had previously emphasized that the aim of the meeting was, above all, to shape competition between the two countries responsibly, to secure communication channels and to avoid drifting into conflict.