US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to restore some military communications between the two countries after they held a crucial meeting for hours at Filoli Estate just outside San Francisco on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit.

A number of agreements were signed between the two leaders, who met after almost a year amid fraught relations between the two most powerful economies. They pledged cooperation that would bring Washington and Beijing close to resuming talks under the Military Maritime Consultative Agreement, which was used to improve safety in the air and sea until 2020.

The restoration of military communication means that US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will speak with his Chinese counterpart once someone is named to the job, according to a US official. “That’s been cut off. That’s been worrisome…So we’re back to direct, open, clear, direct communication,” said Biden in a news conference after his meeting with Xi, adding that the meeting included some of the “most constructive and productive discussions”. 

He also said that they would keep the channels of communication open and that Xi is “willing to pick up the phone”, in a sign of possible thaw in US-China relations. Meanwhile, Xi promised to send new pandas to the US and said that he wanted to “deepen the friendly ties between our two peoples”. 

Key takeaways from Biden-Xi meeting

Both leaders signed new agreements

Apart from restoring military communications, the Chinese President also agreed to stop the production of fentanyl, a deadly component of drugs sold in the United States. “It’s going to save lives, and I appreciated President Xi’s commitment on this issue,” Biden said after the meeting.

Notably, the synthetic component is believed to have played a role in around 75,000 deaths in America last year, and became a focus of furious political debate. After the agreement, US officials speculated that the shift will pose as a setback for Latin American drug dealers.

Biden further informed that he and China have agreed to expand their cooperation on artificial intelligence “We’re going to get our experts together and discuss risk and safety issues,” he said.

The two countries have also agreed on further measures to tackle climate change, although they did not elaborate on the use of fossil fuels, according to BBC. Biden and Xi promised to cooperate on slowing methane emissions, a major development ahead of the COP28 later this month.

The Chinese President also urged both countries to jointly promote people-to-people exchanges, including an increase in flights, advanced tourism cooperation, subnational exchanges, strengthening educational cooperation and cooperation on affairs related to the disabled, and encouraging greater interactions and communication between their people, according to Xinhua news agency.

They also agreed to work toward a significant further increase in scheduled passenger flights early next year, and expand various bilateral exchanges in education, overseas students, youth, culture, sports and between the business communities.

Stance on global tensions

In the context of global conflicts, Biden asked his Chinese counterpart to use his influence to calm down major geopolitical tensions, particularly by pressuring Iran to not expand the ongoing Israel-Hamas war into a wider conflict in the Middle East.

Biden reportedly also pressed Xi to continue to withhold military support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “I value our conversation because I think it’s paramount that you and I understand each other clearly, leader to leader, with no misconceptions or miscommunication,” said the US President to Xi.

In response, the Chinese President said, “Conflict and confrontation have unbearable consequences for both sides…Planet Earth is big enough for the two countries to succeed.”

Biden reportedly told Xi that he does not seek a new Cold War against the country, nor does the US seek a change in China’s system. He also reiterated that America has no intention to halt China’s economic development or to contain China, nor to seek “de-coupling” from China

“China has no plans to surpass or unseat the United States, and the United States should not scheme to suppress or contain China,” Xi said during the meeting, according to a readout by news agency Xinhua, in the context of the challenges in the US-China relationship over the years.

“China is consistently committed to having a stable, healthy and sustainable relationship with the United States, and China has interests that must be safeguarded, principles that must be upheld, and red lines that must not be crossed,” Xi further said.

The issue of Taiwan

Taiwan has been the most important component that has strained relations between Washington and Beijing. In this regard, Biden and Xi held a “clear-headed” and “not heated” discussion, where the latter elaborated on China’s principled position on the Taiwan question.

Xi urged the US to take “real actions” to honour its commitment in the G20 meeting in Indonesia of “not supporting Taiwan independence, stop arming Taiwan, and support China’s peaceful reunification.” The Chinese leader stressed that the country will realise the reunification of Taiwan with its mainland and the process is “unstoppable”.

Biden said he reaffirmed the United States’ “One China” policy and its belief that any resolution must be peaceful. “I’m not going to change that. That’s not going to change,” he reiterated. However, he said that the US will continue to arm Taiwan as a deterrent against Chinese efforts to forcefully reunify the self-governing island.

According to a US official, Xi told Biden that he had no plans to invade the island, but Biden highlighted China’s massive military build-up around Taiwan. Biden also called on China to avoid meddling in Taiwan’s elections next year.

Technology exports and other issues

Regarding trade tensions between the US and China, Xi raised the issue of US restrictions of technology exports to Beijing, calling it “technological containment”, according to CNN. Biden responded by saying that the US was not going to provide technology to China that could be used militarily against it and also raised concerns about harassment of American businesses in the country.

“Noting that China’s development is driven by innovation, he (Xi) held that stifling China’s technological progress is nothing but a move to contain China’s high-quality development and deprive the Chinese people of their right to development,” according to the readout by Xinhua.

Xi said that China’s development and growth will not be stopped by “external efforts”. There is no indication that Biden aims to end the export curbs on Chinese technology, but could calm some nerves in Beijing amid signs that foreign investment was slowing down.

Scope of the meeting

Both US and Chinese officials reported that the meeting was productive, comprehensive and constructive, although both sides are still far apart on many issues. Several analysts also noted that this was a signal of warming relations between the two nations.

In a personal touch, officials said that Biden also wished Xi’s wife a happy birthday, which embarrassed the Chinese President as he admitted to having forgotten his wife’s upcoming birthday because he’s been working so hard.

Officials from both countries had worked tremendously hard for this meeting, with senior ministers and secretaries making a series of bilateral visits throughout this year. Biden’s meeting with Xi was also questioned by Republicans, who pressed him to challenge China on wrongful detentions of Americans and fentanyl.

However, analysts have cautioned against overly optimistic conclusions, saying that the crucial bilateral meeting is unlikely to change the positions of the leaders of many pressing issues.

The course of the US-China relationship is likely to influence the US presidential election in 2024, although it is unlikely to be the decisive issue. Pew Research estimates that 83% of Americans have a negative opinion of China and are worried about Taiwan’s future as well as China’s place in the globe. However, sentiments in China toward the US might be moderating. According to a poll conducted in October, fewer Chinese (48%) think of the US as an enemy than in 2022 (74%).

(with inputs from agencies)

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