US President Joe Biden and his Chinese President Xi Jinping held a much-awaited virtual summit on Tuesday. In their first face to face virtual meeting that lasted for more than three hours, both the leaders tried to emphasize on their personal relationship and tried to find ways to work with each other and avoiding conflict and jointly responding to global challenges such as climate change and energy security.
According to a White House press statement, President Biden told his Chinese counterpart of the continued determination of the United States to ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific region. Biden reiterated the importance of freedom of navigation and safe overflight to the region’s prosperity, the readout said.
They also traded strong warnings on the future of Taiwan, with President Xi saying that those backing Taiwan were “playing with fire”. The White House readout reiterated the longstanding US policy that does not recognize Taiwan’s independence but supports the defense of the island.
The meeting was held against the backdrop of deteriorating relations and mounting tensions between the US and China. According to White House readout, Biden had raised concerns about human rights, including the situation in Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong, China’s “unfair” trade practices and its aggressive behaviour across the Indo-Pacific. Biden also underscored the “importance of managing strategic risks”.
The two leaders also discussed climate change and their respective roles, health security and global energy security.
This meeting was held at a time when the US and China had just concluded an agreement at the COP26, met at the G20 and the APEC summit.
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