The United States and China plan a meeting between Biden and Xi in the coming days

The United States and China are planning a call between President Joe Biden and President Xi Jinping in the coming days, according to people familiar with the conversations who spoke on condition of anonymity.

This call would follow their last conversation in April 2024 and their face-to-face meeting in Woodside, California, in November 2023.

Following his talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi last Friday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters that both sides “emphasized the need to keep lines of communication open” between the leaders of China and the US.

“We also agreed on the importance of leaders communicating. And so I fully anticipate that we will see that in the week and months ahead,” Blinken said in New York last week.

Ukraine

U.S. officials have said they look for opportunities, whenever possible, to find common ground with China, whether on issues such as combating fentanyl or in discussions about the risks and safety of artificial intelligence. China’s material support for Russia in the war against Ukraine is expected to be a key issue on the US agenda.

On Wednesday, Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said the United States is not seeking to “contain or limit China,” but rather to ensure continued dialogue and that competition between the two countries remains “stable and does not tend toward conflict.”

He also reiterated the growing concern of the United States and its allies about Chinese companies supplying drones to Moscow, which have significantly bolstered Russia’s battlefield capabilities in its war against Ukraine.

“What we have seen over the course of the last two years is a reconstitution of the Russian military with a speed and determination that frankly surprises us. The level of Russian militarization, its ability to rebuild its tanks, its missiles, UAVs [vehículos aéreos no tripulados]with the assistance of China, the support of North Korea, also of Iran. “That’s been a topic of real anxiety,” Campbell said during a moderated online conversation at the Washington-based think tank Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

“We are now in a situation where Russia is trying to change the territorial lines of Europe, and the fact that China is supporting this so substantially is a matter of real concern,” he said.

75th anniversary

This week, China commemorates 75 years of Communist Party rule. In Beijing, Xi reiterated his party’s plans to “reunify” China with Taiwan.

“The wheel of history will not be stopped by any individual or any force,” Xi said during a recent reception, without naming specific individuals or governments. He added that it is “where the greatest national interest lies” and “what the people want.”

Taiwan has been self-governed since 1949, when Mao Zedong’s communists seized power in Beijing after defeating Chiang Kai-shek’s Kuomintang, or KMT, in a civil war, prompting Chiang and his followers to move to the island. .

In 2000, following Taiwan’s second democratic presidential election, the KMT peacefully transferred power for the first time to the Democratic Progressive Party.

Although the Chinese Communist Party has never governed Taiwan, it constantly insists that Taiwan must be brought under its rule, by force if necessary.

However, for decades, the United States has made clear that its decision to change diplomatic recognition from the Republic of China (Taiwan’s formal name) to Beijing or the People’s Republic of China in 1979 was based on the expectation that “the Taiwan’s future will be determined by peaceful means,” as outlined in the Taiwan Relations Law. Under this law, the United States has provided weapons to support the defense of Taiwan.

On Sunday, US President Joe Biden approved $567 million in defense assistance for Taiwan, as China steps up its political and military pressure on the self-governing democracy.

In a statement, Biden announced that he has authorized Blinken “to order the reduction of up to $567 million in Department of Defense defense items and services, and military education and training, to provide assistance to Taiwan.”

In Beijing, Chinese officials urged the United States to “stop arming Taiwan in any way.”

Lin Jian, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, told reporters during a press conference on Monday that “no matter how many weapons the United States provides to Taiwan,” it will not shake the firm resolve of the Beijing government. “to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

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