The president of United States, Joe Bidenmet this Monday in Bali (Indonesia) with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in what is the first personal meeting since he took office.
Both leaders greeted each other with a handshake hands in a luxury hotel in Bali, where they attend the summit of the group of 20to start tomorrow. Then, they began what is expected to be a conversation of several hours, according to a report from App.
BREAKING: Joe Biden and Xi Jinping meet ahead of the G-20 summit in Bali, the first in-person talks between the leaders of the US and China since before the Covid-19 pandemic https://t.co/iHKU2XijYT pic.twitter.com/WcIc08rqSF
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“As leaders of our two nations, we share a responsibility, in my opinion, to show that China and the United States can manage our differences, prevent competition from escalating into anything close to conflict, and find ways to work together on pressing global issues. , which require our mutual cooperation,” Biden said as he opened the meeting.
Even a brief meeting, the leaders’ talks could have consequences stretching out for months or even years as the world’s largest economies come out of increasingly hostile relations, the report said. CNN in a report published on its website.
Biden hopes that this personal meeting, after almost two years communicating only by phone and videoconference, can generate a strategically more valuable result.
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“I know Xi Jinping. I have spent more time with him than with any other world leader,” Biden had told reporters a day before their meeting: “I know him well. He knows me. We have very few misunderstandings.”
The most interesting thing for Biden and his aides would be to reach some level of understanding with Xi regarding how he views the administration and the relationship with China, as well as how he hopes to establish his position regarding China’s relationship with the United States.
The White House has used the phrase “building a floor” to describe the goal of the talks, suggesting that Biden hopes to prevent relations from slipping further while seeing potential improvement.
Biden has said that he wants to discuss with Xi the issue of human rights in China and the tensions around the South China Sea and Taiwan, a Washington ally that Beijing considers a rogue province. Another topic would be North Korea, which has increased missile launches and may be preparing to carry out its first nuclear test since 2017.
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For Xi, the visit to Bali marks his first trip abroad since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which prompted the Chinese government to impose strict lockdowns and draconian restrictions.
Xi’s resurgence on the world stage, in person, comes on the heels of the Communist Party Congress confirming him for his third term.
With information from AP and CNN.
