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At what was almost certainly their last official face-to-face meeting, President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping sounded caution over the potential for deteriorating relations between Beijing and Washington as the US transitions to the incoming administration, and stressed the need for open communication.
“These conversations prevent miscalculations, and they ensure the competition between our two countries will not veer into conflict — be competition, not conflict,” Biden said on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Peru.
Xi, meanwhile, suggested that while he would work with the incoming administration, he warned Washington to “make the right choice” on China policy. Although Xi did not name President-elect Donald Trump, the remarks were “as clear a sign as any that China is now looking past Biden toward his successor,” CNN wrote.
Behind closed doors, Biden and Xi agreed to not give artificial intelligence control over nuclear weapons. Biden also pressed Xi on releasing two US citizens considered wrongfully detained in China, according to Politico, and to rein in North Korea’s support of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
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At APEC, Xi pushed back on tariffs on global trade as akin to “going back in history” — such import duties are the major backbone of Trump’s economic agenda. In meeting Biden ahead of the incoming administration, CNN noted, Xi may be risking future blowback from Washington, and how Trump proceeds in office will have global implications. “The upside is tiny and the downside is enormous if Trump thinks they’re stealing his thunder or (the two leaders) are making deals that would tie Trump’s hands,” a source familiar with the dynamic told the outlet.