Biden, Xi agree need for better relations during first high-stakes meeting
Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Joe Biden met on Monday on the Indonesian island of Bali for highly anticipated talks that come as relations between their countries have fallen to their lowest level in decades.
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Holding their first in-person talks since Biden became president, the pair met on the Indonesian island of Bali ahead of a Group of 20 summit on Tuesday that is set to be fraught with tension over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The pair smiled as they shook hands warmly in front of a row of Chinese and US flags in a ballroom at the luxury hotel Mulia on Bali's Nusa Dua bay.
"It's just great to see you," Biden told Xi as he put an arm around him, adding that he was committed to keeping lines of communication open on a personal and government level.
"As the leaders of our two nations, we share responsibility, in my view, to show that China and the United States can manage our differences, prevent competition from ... turning into conflict, and to find ways to work together on urgent global issues that require our mutual cooperation,” Biden said.
According to a White House statement issued after over three hours of talks between the leaders, Biden and Xi reiterated their opposition to "the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine".
"President Xi pointed out that China is highly concerned about the current situation in Ukraine," Beijing's foreign ministry said in a statement, adding that Chinese officials "support and look forward to a resumption of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine".
'Crossroads'
Xi, who is fresh from securing a norm-breaking third term in office, told Biden the world had "come to a crossroads".
"So we need to chart the right course for the China-US relationship. We need to find the right direction for the bilateral relationship going forward and elevate the relationship," Xi said.
"The world expects that China and the United States will properly handle the relationship.”
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Despite the upbeat public statements, both nations are increasingly suspicious of each other, with the United States fearing that China has stepped up a timeline for seizing Taiwan.
Beijing claims the self-ruled democratic island as part of its territory, while Taiwan sees itself as separate.
US officials said ahead of the meeting that Biden hoped to set up "guardrails" in the relationship with China and to assess how to avoid "red lines" that could push the world's two largest economies into conflict.
Meanwhile Xi was due to meet with other world leaders at the G20 on Tuesday – notably French President Emmanuel Macron.
(with wires)
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