Military and drugs - Biden and Xi get closer
The US and China want to mend their strained relations and have resumed communication between their armed forces after a long period of radio silence. US President Joe Biden and China's head of state Xi Jinping met near the US metropolis of San Francisco for their first face-to-face exchange in a year - the crisis meeting lasted more than four hours.
Afterwards, Biden said that the talks were among the "most constructive and productive" he had had with Xi. The two heads of state had also agreed to be more accessible to each other by telephone. At the same time, the US President made it clear that he continued to regard Xi as a "dictator".
Relations between the world's two largest economies have long been very tense, partly following economic sanctions against Beijing and fears in the West that China's army could invade Taiwan. The long-awaited meeting on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Community (Apec) summit should now serve to stabilize relations between the two countries. Biden and Xi had last seen each other at the G20 summit in November 2022 on the Indonesian island of Bali. They had not spoken since then.
Resumption of military communication
The most important outcome of the meeting in California is likely to be that China and the USA want to resume military communication. This step is of "crucial importance", said Biden. Without an exchange, accidents and misunderstandings could occur.
According to the accompanying press from the White House, it is now planned that US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will meet his Chinese counterpart. There will also be operational talks between senior military leaders from both countries. The US commander of the Pacific Air Forces will also take part, and ship commanders will also exchange information with each other, it was also reported.
In recent months, the US government had repeatedly complained that the usual direct military communication with China was not working and that this could lead to dangerous misunderstandings and miscalculations. For example, Beijing had turned down requests for talks at defense minister level. Washington had repeatedly warned that communication between the military of the two countries was of crucial importance for the responsible management of relations. The Chinese had essentially cut these communication links, which posed risks.
Fight against fentanyl
In the fight against the import of the deadly drug fentanyl into the USA, Biden also secured more support from China. Biden and Xi agreed on measures against the export of components for the production of the opioid from China. The drug kills many people in the USA - more than gun violence, emphasized Biden after the talks with Xi. According to the US National Institute on Drug Abuse, more than 70,000 people died from an overdose of synthetic opioids - mainly fentanyl - in 2021 alone.
The US government accuses China of playing a crucial role in America's drug epidemic - through the production of fentanyl, which enters the US in mass quantities. For Democrat Biden, who is running for re-election in November 2024, the agreement with China is a domestic political success. The drug epidemic in the USA is a matter of concern for people in the country, and the Republicans have put pressure on the President in recent months to take a tougher stance on the issue with China.
Clear words on Taiwan
The issue of Taiwan holds great potential for conflict. The island republic, which is only separated from China by a strait, has had a democratic government for decades. However, China regards the country with more than 23 million inhabitants as part of its territory. The area is repeatedly the scene of military demonstrations of power.
According to the White House, Biden emphasized in the conversation with Xi that the US rejects any unilateral change to the status quo by either side and expects the differences to be resolved by peaceful means. The US President had called on China to exercise restraint in its military activities in and around the Taiwan Strait.
However, during the exchange with Biden, President Xi expressed ongoing concerns and noted that the Taiwan issue was the biggest and potentially most dangerous conflict in US-China relations, journalists reported, citing a US government official.
Xi had spoken out in favor of peaceful reunification - but also about conditions that would allow the use of force, they added. He kept hearing reports from the USA that China was planning military action in Taiwan, the government representative quoted Xi as saying. This is not the case.
Picking up the phone
Biden made it clear that he and Xi wanted to pick up the phone in future if a crisis developed. A few weeks after the meeting in Bali a year ago, a huge Chinese surveillance balloon appeared over US territory. At the time, the US accused Beijing of a large-scale espionage program and shot down the balloon. China rejected the accusations and spoke of a weather balloon.
The relationship slipped to a low point - Biden and Xi did not meet in person despite their previous efforts in Bali to mend the broken relationship. "President Xi and I have agreed that each of us will pick up the phone," Biden said after the meeting in California.
- Following their meeting in California, President Joe Biden and Xi Jinping also discussed the international issue of combating the illegal export of fentanyl components from China, which contributes to the deadly opioid crisis in the United States.
- In the realm of international diplomacy, President Biden highlighted the importance of maintaining open lines of communication with China, especially in the military sector, and expressed his intention to readily speak with Xi Jinping should any urgent matters arise.
Source: www.dpa.com
