Joe Biden had his first in-person meeting in five years with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Monday in Bali, Indonesia, and the first since he assumed the presidency. Biden noted that he has spent a good deal of time with Xi in the past when they were both vice presidents of their respective countries.
The two leaders are attending this week’s G20 Summit being hosted by the Presidency of Indonesia. The last time the two met in person was at the 2017 meeting of the globalist World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Biden appeared eager to discuss Chinese and U.S. cooperation on his global climate change agenda and to work on relaxing the “competition” between the two nations. However, Biden steered completely clear of mentioning the COVID-19 pandemic to Xi at all.
The G20 Summit trip is only the second time Xi has traveled internationally since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Several major Chinese cities are still under strict lockdown procedures as the nation controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) remains on high alert against the spread of coronavirus.
Xi said during the meeting that the globe and all of humanity “are confronted with unprecedented challenges.” He said the world stands at a “crossroads,” and where things go from here is “a question that is not only on our mind but also on the mind of all countries.”
Xi described the diplomatic relationship between CCP-controlled China and the U.S. dating back to the Nixon administration, saying it has resulted in “lessons learned” by both nations.
I don’t know who needs to hear this but Joe Biden meeting with Xi today could very well be the beginning of World War 3. These meetings are important. Xi will be sizing him up the whole time.
What do you think he’s gonna see?
— Jesse Kelly (@JesseKellyDC) November 14, 2022
Taiwan has been a matter of concern during the Biden administration, as the president has given indications that the U.S. would provide military support to the island nation if it were to be invaded by Chinese military forces. The White House has had to walk back Biden’s statements in that regard multiple times.
Taiwan has declared itself to be a sovereign country under a democratic form of government. Xi reiterated China’s position regarding Taiwan in a recent speech to the CCP National Congress when he said that Taiwan must recognize China’s rule over the island.
As Biden did not mention COVID-19, neither did Xi bring up Taiwan during their Monday meeting. At the conclusion of their meeting, Xi said that he looks forward to continuing to work with Biden “to bring China-U.S. relations back to the track of healthy and stable growth to the benefit of our two countries and the world as a whole.”
