US President Biden and China’s Xi Jinping hold talks on Taiwan, trade, technology, and security issues

Asia-Pacific, News, US April 4, 2024 , by IRIA No Comments

U.S. President Joe Biden held a telephone conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping on April 2, 2024. This is the first time that the two leaders spoke directly with each other since they met in person at the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summing in November last year.

According to a statement released by the White House, “the two leaders held a candid and constructive discussion on a range of bilateral, regional, and global issues, including areas of cooperation and areas of difference.”

The statement added Biden and Xi “welcomed ongoing efforts to maintain open channels of communication and responsibly manage the relationship through high-level diplomacy and working-level consultations in the weeks and months ahead.”

The White House statement said that Biden “raised concerns over the PRC’s support for Russia’s defense industrial base and its impact on European and transatlantic security, and he emphasized the United States’ enduring commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.”

In the call that lasted around 105 minutes, the two leaders spoke about a range spanning around Taiwan, Artificial Intelligence, and regional security situations. The call comes only a few weeks ahead of the significant diplomatic interactions between the two nations, as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen are expected to make separate trips to China.

US China summit in San Francisco — ^{Biden and Xi led the expanded bilateral meeting in California on November 15, 2023. The meeting included a dozen government officials from China and the U.S. including U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan as well as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and chief of staff Cai Qi. (Image Credit: Xinhua)}

Additionally, Biden conveyed his concerns to Xi regarding the Chinese company, ByteDance’s control over TikTok, as stated by John Kirby, the spokesperson for the National Security Council. A bill is currently under consideration in the Senate to compel ByteDance to relieve the app for the American market, whereas the House has already passed the legislation.

Taiwan issue

The White House’s summary of the call revealed that the U.S. President emphasized the importance of peace and stability in Taiwan before the upcoming inauguration of Lai Ching-te, the winner of the island’s presidential election in January. Furthermore, he planned to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to the longstanding “One China” policy.

Next month, Taiwan is scheduled to inaugurate president-elect Lai Ching-te, who is affiliated with the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). Beijing has levied accusations against the DPP of engaging in “separatist activities” and has asserted that Lai represents a “grave threat” to cross-Strait relations.

Unfair trade policies

White House also stated that President Biden expressed concerns to Xi regarding what he termed as China’s “unfair trade policies and non-market economic practices.” Additionally, he conveyed that Washington would persist in implementing measures to safeguard against the misuse of advanced US technologies that could compromise national security. However, he also emphasized the intention to avoid excessively restricting trade and investment.

In response, Xi also told Biden that Beijing would “not sit idly by” if Washington continued to suppress “China’s high-tech development.”

Biden and Xi walking at Filoli Estate — *^{President Xi Jinping having a conversation with U.S. President Joe Biden during a walk at Filoli Estate on November 15, 2023, afternoon. (Image Credit: Xinhua)}*

“The United States has launched an endless stream of measures to suppress China’s economy, trade, science and technology, and the list of sanctions against Chinese companies is getting longer and longer,” China’s Xinhua news agency reported Xi as saying.

China’s state-owned media outlet reported that the two leaders also engaged in discussions concerning the developments in Ukraine in the wake of Russia’s invasion, as well as the situation on the Korean Peninsula. They discussed the ongoing regional security situation in the context of Pyongyang’s numerous test firings of ballistic missiles, eliciting concerned reactions from Seoul and Tokyo.