/ world today news/ Although Joe Biden welcomed progress after talks with Xi Jinping, Taiwan still remains a stumbling block between Washington and Beijing, Western media noted. And the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s report on the summit was mixed, saying Chinese President Xi took a hard line by ordering Biden to stop arming Taipei.
US President Joe Biden said his summit with Xi Jinping had produced significant progress, including agreements to curb drug trafficking, restore military lines of communication and start conversations about the global risks posed by artificial intelligence.
However, The Guardian reports, it became clear that after more than four hours of talks at a mansion outside San Francisco, the meeting did not bring the US and China one iota closer on the issue of Taiwan’s fate, with Xi Jinping reportedly telling Biden, that it is “the biggest and potentially most dangerous problem in US-China relations.”
Moreover, Biden himself risked upending some of the agreements at the summit, the first in a year between the two leaders, with his unexpected response to a reporter’s question at the end of the news conference, in which he reiterated that he still views Xi Jinping as a dictator .
“Look, that’s the way it is,” said the American president.
“He is a dictator in the sense that he is a man who runs a country that is communist, based on a form of government that is completely different from ours.”
The Chinese Foreign Ministry’s report on the summit was also mixed, saying that Xi Jinping had taken a hard line on Taiwan in particular.
“The US side should … stop arming Taiwan and support China’s peaceful reunification,” Xi told Biden, according to Beijing.
“China will achieve unification and it cannot be stopped,” the Chinese leader also said.
Aside from his casual “dictator” comment, Biden was mostly upbeat about the meeting, noting that the two leaders have known each other for a long time but that the meeting was “one of the most constructive and productive we’ve had.”
“I think we’ve made important progress,” Biden said, pointing to China’s agreement to curb the trafficking of precursors and manufacturing equipment used to make the drug fentanyl, which has become the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18 to 49.
Biden said restoring contact between the US and Chinese militaries has become “critical” to reducing accidents and dangerous miscalculations.
And he said the start of conversations about artificial intelligence and security represent “tangible steps in the right direction to define what is dangerous and what is acceptable.”
A senior US official said that compared to the last meeting between the two leaders in Bali a year and a day earlier, in the immediate aftermath of the Covid pandemic, there was now “much more give and take”.
They sat facing each other, only six or seven feet apart, and could reach across the table. You could see the look on each other’s faces.”
“President Biden was pulling no punches,” the official added.
“He was respectful but very clear.”
Before the talks began, Xi Jinping said: “Planet Earth is big enough for both sides to succeed.”
Xi Jinping made it clear to Biden that Beijing is not happy with US sanctions against high technology, according to a statement from China’s foreign ministry.
“US actions against China in terms of export controls, investment verification and unilateral sanctions are seriously harming China’s legitimate interests,” Xi Jinping said.
“The suppression of Chinese science and technology is hindering China’s high-quality development and depriving the Chinese people of their right to development.”
However, according to a senior US administration official: “President Xi has made it very clear in his conversations that he certainly wants to stabilize relations with the United States at this time.”
“He’s also demonstrated quite clearly a deep knowledge of some of the debates about China in the United States, and I think in some ways he’s quite sensitive to some of those discussions.”
At one point during the talks, Biden and Xi Jinping walked together on the grounds of the Filoli estate, located 50 kilometers south of San Francisco, and there was at least one moment of humor.
Biden wished a happy birthday to Xi Jinping’s wife, Peng Liyuan, because they share the same birthday – November 20. Xi admitted he was embarrassed because he had been working so hard he forgot his wife’s birthday was next week, and thanked Biden for the reminder.
Biden said after the summit that he understood the two sides were in a competitive relationship, but he was committed to managing the competition responsibly “so as not to escalate into conflict” and to find agreement where their interests coincide, as in this case with fentanyl.
Biden said the flow of processed fentanyl from China to the West was halted several years ago, but the trade in raw materials to make the drug continues.
“Today, with this new understanding, we are taking action to significantly reduce the flow of precursor chemicals and pill presses from China to the Western Hemisphere,” Biden said.
“This will save lives and I appreciate President Xi Jinping’s commitment to this issue,” he said.
Speaking about the restoration of military contacts, Biden said: “We are returning to direct, open, clear communication.”
After a total lack of such contact for several years, a senior US official said the Chinese governments had agreed on Wednesday to three levels of communication.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will meet his Chinese counterpart in the next “few weeks” after a new Chinese defense chief is appointed.
Senior military commanders will deal with operational matters and matters of military practice, and at a lower level there will be operational interaction between ship captains and other officers.
Speaking about upcoming AI discussions, the US official admitted that the talks were about “early-stage mechanisms” and were far from any joint statements.
“This is a process that will require more serious interaction,” the official said.
Biden acknowledged that he had not reached an agreement with the Chinese president on the fate of American citizens detained by China or facing a travel ban.
It was also clear that there was no progress on Taiwan after what US officials called a “substantive exchange of views” on the island.
“I think President Xi has clarified the lingering concerns, emphasizing that this is the biggest, potentially dangerous issue in the US-China relationship,” a senior US official said.
Xi Jinping reportedly urged Beijing to prioritize peaceful unification, “but then immediately moved to conditions under which the potential use of force could be used.”
“I think President Biden answered very clearly that the longstanding position of the United States is a determination to maintain peace and stability, that we believe in the status quo, and that we have asked the Chinese to respect the election process in Taiwan,” the official said.
According to the American version, Xi Jinping responded by saying: “Look, peace is very nice, but at some point we have to move to a more general agreement.”
Xi Jinping said he had seen reports and assessments in the US that China planned to take military action by a certain year and expressed “irritation” at such reports, insisting there were no such plans and that no one in the Chinese system had said with him for them.
Translation: SM
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