‘Ensuring that rivalry does not degenerate into conflict’: Joe Biden on Wednesday summed up the entire theme of his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who warned of the “unbearable” consequences of a confrontation between two superpowers.
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Shaking hands on the steps of a plush California country estate, the two leaders picked up the thread of a conversation that had been interrupted for more than a year.
Xi Jinping and Joe Biden had not spoken directly since a long interview on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali, and since then the bilateral relationship has become increasingly tense.
The American president, surrounded by his delegation and sitting at a long wooden table opposite the Chinese president, called in a short introductory statement for the competition to be held “responsibly.”
According to an English translation, Xi Jinping appreciated that China and the US could not “turn their backs” on each other.
“The planet is big enough for our two countries to thrive,” he asserted, as Washington and Beijing engage in fierce economic, technological, strategic and military competition.
Joe Biden called for “joint efforts” to combat drug trafficking or deal with the rise of artificial intelligence.
Each of the two men wanted to remember that their relationship began long before the 80-year-old Democrat arrived in the White House.
“Our meetings have always been open, direct and useful,” assured the American president, adding: “It is crucial that you and I understand each other clearly.”
“I firmly believe in a bright future of bilateral relations,” Xi Jinping said.
No joint statement is expected following the meeting, but Joe Biden is planning a press conference.
Ahead of the meeting, the two countries launched a joint climate working group to strengthen coordination on “one of the greatest challenges of our time.”
The relationship between China and the United States frankly deteriorated with the flight of a Chinese balloon over American territory earlier this year. Washington condemned an espionage operation that China denied.
In March, Xi Jinping condemned an American strategy of “encirclement” while the United States strengthened its Asia-Pacific alliances and imposed economic sanctions on China.
However, in the summer the tone softened enough to allow the Californian to organize face-to-face.
Joe Biden, running for a second term, and Xi Jinping, facing a deteriorating economic and social situation in China, have a fundamental interest in ensuring that the rivalry continues in a potentially turbulent 2024 with presidential elections in the United States remains under control of the United States and Taiwan.
The status of the island, over which Beijing claims sovereignty and to which Washington provides significant military aid, remains a key point of contention.
Joe Biden “will make it clear (…) that we do not support Taiwanese independence” and “that we do not want the status quo to change unilaterally, and certainly not by force,” said a spokesman for White House John Kirby House reiterates the deliberately ambiguous position of the United States.
Washington also calls on China, an ally of Iran and Russia, not to exacerbate major international crises: the conflict between Israel and Hamas and the war in Ukraine.
Above all, the American president wants to restore military communication, known as “Mil-Mil”, between the two nuclear powers, which has been interrupted for more than a year.
A senior US official indicated that the two leaders could decide on “preliminary steps” in this direction on Wednesday.
He also noted that Washington hoped to seal “progress” in the fight against fentanyl trafficking at the meeting.
This powerful synthetic opiate, made from chemical compounds originating primarily in China, causes tens of thousands of overdoses in the United States each year.