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President Joe Biden met privately with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday to press him on the Republic of China’s unfair trade policies, a topic that had been central to President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign platform.
The 81-year-old Biden stressed that federal officials would take necessary actions to counter any use of advanced technology that could undermine U.S. national security or that of its allies, according to a White House statement. The meeting, held at Xi’s hotel, marked the third and final time Biden would meet with the Chinese leader during his presidency, concluding the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South America.
The private discussion followed a public misstep by Biden, who mistakenly referred to the U.S.-China relationship as an “alliance” before quickly correcting himself. “We are the most important alliance – or the most important relationship in the entire world, and how we’re getting along together can impact the rest of the world,” Biden said, according to multiple outlets. “And so our two countries can not let any of this competition veer into conflict. That’s our responsibility and over the last four years I think we’ve proven it’s possible to have this relationship.”
Xi appeared concerned that the incoming Republican administration under Trump could create divisions in U.S.-China relations, according to reports. “China is ready to work with the new US administration to maintain communication, expand cooperation and manage differences so as to strive for a steady transition of the China-US relationship for the benefit of the two peoples,” Xi said through an interpreter.
Trump, who is 78, has threatened to resume his tariff-driven trade war with China, which he initiated during his first term to secure a new economic deal that would benefit American companies. He is now advocating for a universal tariff of 10% to 20% on all imports into the U.S. and an additional 60% tariff on imports from China. Additionally, Trump has called for a global reparations conference to hold China accountable for its role in the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed more than a million American lives. Last year, Trump suggested China should pay $50 trillion in reparations for the virus, which parts of the U.S. government, including the FBI, believe may have originated from a lab leak in Wuhan.
Behind closed doors, Biden and Xi addressed a range of contentious topics, including the economy, cybersecurity, Taiwan, and Ukraine. Biden also condemned North Korea for deploying thousands of military troops to Russia, according to the White House. The two leaders discussed the need to assess the risks of artificial intelligence, maintain human control over nuclear weapons decisions, keep communication channels open, and reduce China’s fentanyl production.
An estimated 223,000 Americans died from fentanyl, much of it sourced from China, during Biden’s first three years in office. Republicans have criticized him for not doing more to curb the flow of the drug sooner.
Biden and Xi began their day at the 21-nation summit in Lima, Peru, where leaders donned brown scarves as part of the event’s tradition, wearing the host country’s traditional garments for a photo op. Biden was positioned in the back corner of the conference’s annual family photo, while Xi stood front and center next to Peru’s President Dina Boluarte.
As his presidency nears its end, Biden is expected to arrive in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday for the annual G-20 summit, which includes leaders from the world’s most economically successful countries.
