Biden, Xi Discuss ‘Complex Nature’ of Ties during Virtual Meet

Washington: In their first face-to-face virtual summit, US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Tuesday discussed the “complex nature” of ties between the two superpowers, as well as the “importance of managing competition responsibly”, the White House said.

The summit was also the third between the two leaders since Biden took office in January this. The other two were telephone calls.

According to the White House, the Presidents “covered areas where our interests align, and areas where our interests, values, and perspectives diverge”.

“President Biden welcomed the opportunity to speak candidly and straightforwardly to President Xi about our intentions and priorities across a range of issues.”

Besides reiterating Washington’s stand against its interests and values, Biden also raised concerns about China’s “practices in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong, as well as human rights more broadly”, the White House said.

The US leader also discussed about the importance of a “free and open” Indo-Pacific, while adding that America was determined to uphold its commitments in the region.

Regarding Taiwan, Biden reaffirmed the US government’s commitment to ‘one-China’ policy.

He added that the “US strongly opposes unilateral efforts to change the status quo or undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait”.

On his part, Xi said the two countries needed to improve “communication” and face challenges “together”.

“Humanity lives in a global village, and we face multiple challenges together. China and the US need to increase communication and cooperation.

“I stand ready to work with you Mr President, to… move China-US relations forward in a positive direction,” the Chinese leader added.

Meanwhile, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying described the meeting as “constructive and productive”, adding that it helped “increase mutual understanding”, reports the BBC.