President Joe Biden is reportedly planning to meet in person with Chinese President Xi Jinping in November for the first time in a year amid rising tensions with China, senior administration officials told the Washington Post.
The meeting between Biden and Xi is in the planning stages, though one administration official told the Washington Post that the plans are “pretty firm” and the White House is “beginning the process” of planning the meeting. The last meeting between the two world leaders occurred in Nov. 2022 at the Group of 20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, where Biden and Xi discussed how to improve relations between China and the U.S., the Post reported. (RELATED: ‘That Is Crap’: Biden, Xi Had Heated Argument Over Alleged Biolabs In Ukraine, Book Says)
Xi notably did not attend the United Nations General Assembly in September. Leaders from France, Russia, the United Kingdom and India also missed Biden’s speech at the General Assembly.
In his speech, Biden promised that he did not want to contain China or any other countries. Rather, Biden said he wants to “responsibly manage competition” with China and is focused on “de-risking not decoupling” with the country.
“When it comes to China I want to be clear and consistent,” Biden said during the speech. “We seek to responsibly manage competition between our countries so it does not tip into conflict. I’ve said we are for de-risking, not decoupling with China.”
US President Joe Biden meets with China’s President Xi Jinping during a virtual summit from the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, November 15, 2021. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Though Xi did not attend the U.N. General Assembly, Secretary of State Antony Blinken did meet with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng ahead of the event, with Han emphasizing that both countries must show “more sincerity” in order to “meet each other halfway,” The Associated Press reported.
Several Biden officials have visited China as tensions with the country have escalated throughout the summer. Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Central Foreign Affairs Office Director Wang Yi and Foreign Minister Qin Gang in Beijing in June in an effort to push for military-to-military direct communication in crisis situations. In August, Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo visited the country to meet with Chinese Minister of Culture and Tourism Hu Heping to discuss plans to boost mutual tourism between the two countries.