Key Themes in the Biden-Xi Meeting ahead of APEC Summit

That great powers fear each other is a central aspect of life in international politics. The United States for example, invested enormous resources to deterring Soviet Union from starting a war in Europe during the Cold War, not because of some deep-seated commitment to promoting peace around the world, but because American regime feared that a Soviet victory would lead to a dangerous shift in the balance of power (Mearsheimer 2001). US presidents engaged in scores of meetings with their counterparts, albeit irregularly. President Ronald Reagan called the Soviet Union an “evil empire” (Warner 2023), but he also understood the importance of dialogue and cooperation with the main adversary that helped end the Cold war.

Now the situation has changed, China is the new superpower that threatens U.S. global domination. Hence, the meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and American President Joe Biden in San Francisco during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit (APEC) on November 15, 2023 was closely observed by the world. This marked Xi’s first visit to the U.S. in six years and the second meeting between the two leaders as the last one between them ahead of the G20 summit in Bali in November 2022. Three key points were identified by experts from the meeting between China and the US.

First is the economic front.  Xi emphasized China’s support for more open trade policies and said that “Planet Earth is big enough” for both superpowers and that their countries were very different but should be “fully capable of rising above differences” (CGTN 2023). The American president in response did not appear conciliatory. Yukon Haung pointed to the “anti-China sentiments of both Republicans and Democrats” (Haung 2023).  Biden underscored the United States’ endorsement of a free and open Indo-Pacific that is viewed by Beijing as part of a containment strategy. President Xi made it clear that he wanted to stabilise the relationship with the United States, the official said, adding that Mr. Biden was very direct with Mr. Xi and told him that China did not provide a level playing field to the U.S. companies (Hindu, 2023). China has agreed to clamp down on the production of fentanyl precursors, a critical step towards addressing the rampant opioid crisis in the US

Second focus of the discussion was the military front. The two leaders engaged in a significant conversation about Taiwan, with President Xi characterizing it as the most precarious aspect of U.S.-China relations. China has consistently found the United States’ support of Taiwan problematic, as China regards the self-governing island nation as an integral part of its territory. Mr. Biden said the U.S. “believes in the status quo, Mr. Xi said peace is good, but at some point, they need to move towards resolutions of the issue” (The Hindu 2023). The two leaders also discussed the Ukraine conflict. The US spearheaded Western initiatives to support and arm Ukraine, whereas China extended diplomatic support to Russia, even assisting its economy when the West aimed to impose economic sanctions on Moscow. A noteworthy milestone has been the reinstatement of the Beijing–Washington hotline—a direct communication system facilitating dialogue between the leaders of the United States and China. Originating in November 2007, the establishment of this hotline was announced as a measure to create a military communication channel. Its purpose is to prevent misunderstandings between the two nations’ militaries, particularly during critical moments in the Pacific region (Gramer 2023).

Third focus of the meeting was on the issue of Artificial Intelligence (AI).  China is among the first countries to introduce binding regulations on artificial intelligence (AI). These regulations specifically address recommendation algorithms for content dissemination, synthetically generated images and video, and generative AI systems such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT. However, the West has disregarded them as inconsequential or viewed solely within the context of geopolitical competition to establish AI rules. This meeting marked the acknowledgment.  This meeting marked the much needed step of mutual awareness and exchange of ideas on best practices.  According to White Office press release, “The leaders affirmed the need to address the risks of advanced AI systems and improve AI safety through U.S.-China government talks” (White House 2023). Matt Sheehan points out that “For the time being, the two countries should focus on understanding the nature of those constraints in the other country and exchanging best practices on technical and policy interventions for the safe deployment of AI” (Huang 2023). Overall the meeting discussed a range of  issues and Chinese media described the meetings in very general terms, saying Xi and Biden will talk about “strategic, global, and directional issues concerning China-U.S. relations as well as major matters related to world peace,” US officials said that topics will include the Israel war against Palestinians, Taiwan, and the war in Ukraine. (Koetse 2023).

Most talked about moment of the meeting was shown in a video also surfaced online showing the two leaders talking about their respective cars. Biden compliments Xi on his Hongqi N701 Limo, “It’s a beautiful vehicle!” Xi Jinping then replied through an interpreter “Show the president”. Biden then looked inside the Chinese car, and then gestured to his own ride, a Cadillac built like a rolling bunker. “You know what they call that car?” President Biden asked his Chinese counterpart, adding, “They call it ‘The Beast.'” This interaction generated different responses from observers. After the end of the meeting, Biden called Xi a dictator reminding us of President Ronald Reagan characterizing the Soviet Union as “evil empire”.

To some observers the meeting showed the limits of success in US-China ties as the positive outcome did not go beyond focus on XI’s car (Hashmi 2023). For others the meeting “added an extra layer of significance, making it a noteworthy and promotion-worthy moment” (Koetse 2023). There is no doubt that conflict resolution among great powers is a long term process and only possible when the meetings are both content-centred to relationship-centred. Being great powers with greater consequences for peace and stability in the world, they need to avoid ignoring or talking away each other’s perceptions. Instead, they must try to understand where the conflict is rooted in the relationship. This meeting could be counted as one of such efforts.

References

• Koetse, Mary (2023), “Beautiful” Hongqi Moment: National Pride and Shifting Dynamics in Sino-American Relations”
  https://www.whatsonweibo.com/xi-and-bidens-beautiful-hongqi-moment-national-pride-and-shifting-dynamics-in-sino-american-relations/?lp_txn_id=61178
• John Mearshiemer (2001), The Tragedy of Great Power Politics ( W. Norton, New York, 2014), p. 49.
• Hashmi, Sana (2023), “Biden’s focus was on Xi’s car, character. It shows the limits of success in US-China ties,” The Print, 22 Nov, https://theprint.in/opinion/eye-on-china/bidens-focus-was-on-xis-car-character-it-shows-the-limits-of-success-in-us-china-tiesbidens-focus-was-on-xis-car-character-it-shows-the-limits-of-success-in-us-china-ties/1854110/.
• Warner, Frank (2023), “The Evil Empire Speech”, The Morning Call, 20 Nov 2023, https://frankwarner.typepad.com/free_frank_warner/2003/12/story_of_reagan.html/.
• CGTN(2023), “Xi tells Biden success for one country is an opportunity for another”, 16 Nov, https://news.cgtn.com/news/2023-11-16/Xi-tells-Biden-success-for-one-country-is-an-opportunity-for-the-other-1oLTFkmv1m0/index.html.
• Gramer, Robbie (2023), US and China set up Space Hotline, Financial Times, 23 November, https://www.ft.com/content/900870f4-8f9f-11e5-a549-b89a1dfede9b.
• White House (2023), Readout of President JoeBiden’s Meeting with President Xi Jinping of the People’s Republic of China, White House Official, 15 November, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/11/15/readout-of-president-joe-bidens-meeting-with-president-xi-jinping-of-the-peoples-republic-of-china-2//.
• Huang, Yukon et al. (2023), “Three Takeaways from the Biden-Xi Meetings,” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 16 November, https://carnegieendowment.org/2023/11/16/three-takeaways-from-biden-xi-meeting-pub-91042?utm_source=ctw&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=buttonlink&mkt_tok=ODEzLVhZVS00MjIAAAGPeXYoouzANZL5AMx06n1APCDB14DR3VCoXO7rf6Bo5qjcBSEC-twH14zb8tEZ15xBbPMYEuEW5tcCKwIjZ3tdO6fZ5PM7NCnY37NnPUxI.

Rashid Abbasi

Intern, Asia in Global Affairs

The originality of the content and the opinions expressed within the content are solely the author’s and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of the website.