President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke Tuesday for the first time in months as the Biden administration sought to bolster communication between the two countries under the “trust but verify” mantra that Biden adopted after their historic summit in November.
The two discussed a diversity of issues, adding China’s competitive military tactics targeting Taiwan, Beijing’s relations with Russia, and “lingering considerations about the People’s Republic of China’s unfair industrial policies and non-market economic practices,” according to a White House readout of the call.
The call comes after Biden and Xi met in California in November for the first time in a year, after which the president said the two would “keep the lines of communication open,” but maintained his complaint toward his Chinese counterpart and told reporters that he still considers Xi a “dictator” and would operate under a “trust but verify” strategy when it comes to his relationship with the country. Porcelain.
The White House had a “frank and constructive” verbal exchange.
The phone call is the first since July 2022 and comes days before Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Secretary of State Antony Blinken make a stop in China — Yellen on Wednesday and Blinken in the coming weeks, they said. the functionaries. In addition to China’s close relationship with Russia and its stance on Taiwan, the presidents also discussed China’s commitment to reducing the flow of fentanyl and the immediate advancement of synthetic intelligence. The call comes a day after The New York Times reported that Chinese actors were interfering in the 2024 presidential election to undermine Biden. It is unclear if the report was discussed on the call. A White House official told reporters that the United States “never really takes the Chinese at their word when they say they will or possibly won’t do something,” when asked by a reporter at a press conference ahead of the discussion about Xi’s promise not to do something in November. something. interfere in the elections, adding that “it is about verifying, as the president says. ”
The call comes as former Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou is visiting China, where he is expected to meet Xi next week, Reuters reported, citing unnamed sources. China’s military exercises in the South China Sea, designed to intimidate Taiwan, have exacerbated tensions. between China and the United States, which supplies Taiwan with the military. The U. S. doesn’t see the self-governing island as independent from China, Biden said earlier this year, but it does see its ability to choose its own leaders outside the Chinese government.
Biden and Xi discuss Taiwan, AI and fentanyl in a bid to return to normal leaders’ talks (Associated Press)
Biden and Xi speak for the first time since November summit amid tensions (CNN)
Biden says China has ‘real problems’ ahead of meeting with Xi (Forbes)