opening of trade on Monday, US President stressed the need for “safeguards” to avoid a “conflict”, and his Chinese counterpart called for better “communication”.
Le Monde with AFP
Joe Biden and Xi Jinping held on Monday 15 November, a highly anticipated virtual summit, US President highlighting the need for “safeguards” to avoid “conflict” between the two countries and Chinese President pleading for better “communication”.
Joe Biden assured that “competition between the two countries should not turn into a conflict, whether intentional or not,” in this exchange which then intervened as litigation accumulate between Washington and Beijing , about Taiwan, but also trade, or human rights. He shared with Xi Jinping his “concerns” about human rights, and put China warned against any “unilateral attempt” to change the status of Taiwan, the White House said after the summit.
“China and the US must improve their communication and cooperation,” said his side Xi Jinping, who said he was happy to see his “old friend”, for the first time by interposed screens, while their previous two exchanges were made on the phone. “I am ready to work with you,” continued to the Chinese president.
The conversation between the two leaders lasted almost four hours. It ended Tuesday at 12 h 24 Chinese time (5 pm 24 am Paris time), reported the official Chinese media.
A “critical crossroads”
In Washington as in Beijing, we tempered Monday on expectations that discussion, that could not lead to “concrete results”, warned the White House.
The spokesman of the Chinese Foreign Ministry Zhao Lijian said Monday that the two leaders had “a frank exchange of views, deep and comprehensive” on bilateral relations, which are at a “critical juncture”.
Joe Biden wanted to see in the flesh the Chinese president, he boasts of having already plenty busy when he was vice president of Barack Obama. But he had to settle for a virtual meeting with Xi Jinping, who has not left China for nearly two years, citing health reasons.
If after the coming to power of Joe Biden, the tone has changed compared to outbursts of Trump era, the relationship between Washington and Beijing remains extremely tense.
The fate of Taiwan in heart clenching
The fate of Taiwan currently focusing the tensions. “To reduce the risk of strategic collision between China and the US, they should take a step back to the question of Taiwan and show restraint,” said the Chinese state newspaper Global Times said in an editorial Monday. A senior White House denounced him “coercive behavior and provocative” of China toward Taiwan among the contentious issues, and stressed that Biden would not fail to address this issue in a “direct and frank.”
This virtual meeting was held when Xi Jinping continues to strengthen its grip on the regime. The Chinese Communist Party last week adopted a statement calling “the Party, army and people entirely to unite more closely around the Central Committee with Xi Jinping as the heart.”
Jen Psaki has she said that Joe Biden, despite his plummeting popularity rating, would arrive “in a strong position” to his meeting with Xi Jinping, because the United States will renew their economies are strengthening their international alliances.
US President faces a political landscape extremely divided, and that a penalty eradicate pandemic, mentioned China Monday enacting a gigantic plan of infrastructures that would enable America to “win the competition “of the XXI th century. At the end of his speech, the US President has repeated one of his favorite phrases: “It is never, ever a good idea to bet against the American people.”