Published on Nov. 14, 2024 at 8:11 p.m., updated on Nov. 14, 2024 at 8:21 p.m.
Lima (AFP) – Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Lima on Thursday to participate in the summit of Asia-Pacific countries, on the sidelines of which he will meet his American counterpart Joe Biden, in a climate of uncertainty marked by the return to January at Donald Trump’s White House.
The plane carrying Mr. Xi landed around 1 p.m. local time (6 p.m. GMT) at a military base near the Peruvian capital.
Joe Biden is expected the same day in Lima where the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit is taking place, which brings together 21 countries accounting for 60% of world GDP and which opened Thursday with a ministerial meeting in behind closed doors. The heads of state or government will meet in turn on Friday and Saturday.
The leaders of the two superpowers plan to meet on the sidelines of this summit on Saturday. This will be their third meeting. Both will then travel to the G20 in Brazil next week.
Democrat Joe Biden, 81, will hand over control in January to Republican Donald Trump, winner of the November 5 vote, and who has already appointed hard-liners against Beijing to his team.
The outgoing president “will take the opportunity to take stock of the efforts made to manage competition responsibly”, according to a senior American official.
Despite “deep disagreements”, China and the United States have “made progress in areas of common interest”, she assured, citing the improvement of military communications and the fight against drug trafficking. synthetic drugs.
Joe Biden’s mandate was marked by strong tensions with Beijing but also by the maintenance, as best he could, of bilateral dialogue.
However, the situation risks deteriorating under his successor.
During the election campaign, Donald Trump promised to defend American industry, threatening to apply customs duties of 10 to 20% on all imported products and up to 60% for those coming from China.
This Asian giant, the world’s second largest economy, is struggling with a real estate crisis and sluggish consumption which could worsen with the return of the Republican tycoon to the White House.
– Megaport financed by Beijing –
“I think the only thing the leaders of Apec and the G20 will talk about is the only world leader who is not there, Donald Trump,” said Victor Cha, the president of the department of geopolitics and foreign policy of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington.
The discussions will focus on what we can “expect from the future Trump administration in terms of trade, alliances and (concerning) other issues”, he added during a press conference this week in the American capital.
American Secretary of State Antony Blinken participates in the ministerial meeting on Thursday alongside American Trade Representative Katherine Tai. Objective: to highlight the United States’ commitment to supporting growth in the Asia-Pacific region in the face of competition from China.
Xi Jinping plans to inaugurate the new megaport of Chancay, located north of Lima, with Peruvian President Dina Boluarte at the end of the day.
Financed by China to the tune of 3.5 billion dollars (3.3 billion euros), the terminal, which will eventually have 15 berths, illustrates the growing influence of Beijing in Latin America, once considered the reserved domain of the United States.
Since 1989, Apec has aimed to promote economic growth, cooperation and investment in the Pacific region. Its members also include Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Chile, Canada, Australia , Mexico and Russia.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Russian Head of State Vladimir Putin will be absent.
Mr Biden will meet together on Friday with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, two of his key allies in Asia.
More than 13,000 police officers have been deployed in the Peruvian capital, a city of 10 million inhabitants, to reinforce security during the summit, while demonstrations are organized to denounce an increase in extortion and murders linked to organized crime.
