President Joe Biden is poised to engage in anticipated and “constructive” discussions with Chinese leader Xi Jinping during an upcoming summit in San Francisco this November, as revealed by the White House on Tuesday. These developments transpired in the wake of a rare visit by China’s foreign minister to Washington, setting the stage for a potential encounter at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit. China, however, has yet to formally confirm Xi’s attendance.
Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, conveyed, “We’re aiming to have a constructive conversation, meeting between the leaders in San Francisco in November. That’s what’s going to happen next month in November. We’re having a constructive conversation in San Francisco. I think I just confirmed it.”
An authoritative figure within the US administration informed AFP that “there is an agreement in principle to meet in San Francisco in November. We are still working through important details needed to finalize those plans.”
Since their last encounter in Bali in November 2022, Presidents Biden and Xi have had no direct communication. Ongoing tensions between the world’s leading economies have persisted for years as they compete for supremacy within the Asia-Pacific region and worldwide. Beijing’s pursuit of closer ties with Russia, designed to reduce the United States’ influence, has added another layer to this complex relationship.
Subsequent to a meeting between Beijing’s top diplomat Wang Yi and senior US officials last week, the White House emphasized that both sides were “working together towards a meeting.” Nonetheless, the Chinese foreign minister stressed last Saturday that the path to these talks remains “not smooth.”
Wang articulated this at an event in Washington hosted by the Aspen Strategy Group, as conveyed by state news agency Xinhua, declaring, “Both sides hope to stabilize and improve bilateral relations as soon as possible and agreed to work together toward a San Francisco summit between the two heads of state.” He added a cautionary note, stating, “The path to San Francisco is not smooth and cannot be left to ‘autopilot.’ The two sides must eliminate interference, overcome obstacles, enhance consensus, and accumulate results.”
