US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet on November 16 on the sidelines of the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) summit in Lima, Peru. This is reported by the Voice of America with reference to the White House, UNN reports.
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The two leaders are expected to discuss U.S.-China cooperation, restoration of military-to-military contacts, combating the global fentanyl crisis, and the risks of artificial intelligence, a senior White House official said during a conversation with reporters on Wednesday, November 13.
The US president also intends to express "deep concern" about Beijing's support for Russia's war against Ukraine and the deployment of North Korean troops to help Russia, the official said. According to the official, Biden will also reiterate his "longstanding concerns" about China's "unfair trade policies and non-market economic practices" that harm American workers.
The official added that Biden will raise the issue of China's involvement in cyberattacks on critical US civilian infrastructure, as well as Beijing's increased military activity around Taiwan and in the South China Sea, and will also talk about the importance of respect for human rights.
The meeting is likely to be the last between Biden and Xi before Donald Trump takes office in January 2025.
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The newly elected president has already nominated vocal critics of China to key foreign policy positions, which could lead to a more confrontational US stance toward Beijing. Among them are Republican Congressman Mike Volz as National Security Advisor and Senator Marco Rubio as Secretary of State.
Answering a question from VOA, the official added that whatever the next US presidential administration decides, they will need to find a way to resolve the "tough, complicated relationship" between the US and China.
"Russia, the problems in the (Taiwan) Strait, the South China Sea, and the cyber sphere are issues that the next administration will have to think about carefully because these are areas of deep political disagreement with China, and I don't expect them to go away," he told reporters.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping is also likely to anticipate policy changes with the new US presidential administration, including whether Donald Trump will fulfill his promises to impose high tariffs on all Chinese goods.