China’s Top Diplomat Forecasts Challenging Path to Xi-Biden Summit in San Francisco

China’s Foreign Minister has indicated that the journey towards a prospective meeting between President Xi Jinping of China and U.S. President Joe Biden is unlikely to be without complications. The Chinese Foreign Ministry stated on Sunday that both nations must engage collaboratively to make the meeting fruitful.

During his three-day sojourn to Washington, Wang Yi held talks with President Biden as well as Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. Both parties expressed a commitment to aim for a bilateral summit at the forthcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in San Francisco this November.

In a formal communication issued by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, summarizing interactions with the U.S. strategic community, Wang Yi articulated that reaching the bilateral summit would not be a straightforward affair. He stressed that both countries must be proactive in their efforts, cautioning against the assumption that the summit would materialize through mere inertia.

Wang Yi’s trip to the U.S. capital occurs against a backdrop of persistent tension between the two powers. Key points of contention include U.S. restrictions on exports of high-technology products to China, as well as China’s increasingly aggressive maneuvers in the East and South China Seas.

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The communique acknowledged that while numerous unresolved issues linger between the two nations, there is mutual recognition of the value and necessity of ongoing dialogue.

This impending meeting is the latest in an array of high-level interactions between China and the U.S., as the two countries explore avenues to mitigate an escalating relationship, particularly in the context of conflicts in Ukraine and Israel.

Citing the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s report, Wang Yi also mentioned that both nations needed a “return to Bali,” referencing a prior meeting between President Xi and President Biden at last year’s G20 summit. At that gathering, the leaders delved into multiple areas including Taiwan, trade tensions between the U.S. and China, and cooperative efforts to tackle global challenges such as climate change, public health, and food security.

Wang Yi concluded by stating that both China and the U.S. must “remove distractions, surmount barriers, consolidate common ground, and achieve tangible outcomes.”

Furthermore, the conversations between Wang Yi and U.S. officials extended to cover military exchanges between the two nations, along with cooperation in financial, technological, and cultural domains. The crises in the Middle East and Ukraine were also part of the dialogue.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Xi-Biden Summit

More about Xi-Biden Summit

• Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum
• U.S.-China Relations: An Overview
• Tensions in the South China Sea
• U.S. Export Controls and China
• G20 Summits: Historical Context and Significance
• U.S. and China Military Exchanges: A Brief History
• Global Conflicts: Ukraine and Israel
• Role of State-level Diplomacy in U.S.-China Relations
• China’s Foreign Policy: An Analysis