President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping sought to ease long-simmering tensions during a three-hour meeting in Bali, Indonesia as the two countries find themselves drifting perilously close to direct economic and military confrontation.
The session, on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit, led to agreements between the two world powers to revive normal channels of communication and to warn Russia against using nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Differences remain, however, on other key issues such as Taiwan, human rights and trade policy.
Here are five takeaways:
—Taiwan Tensions Central to Divide
The situation regarding Taiwan was arguably China’s top priority heading into Monday’s meeting, with Biden telling reporters afterward he doesn’t see “any imminent attempt” by China to attack Taiwan.
Xi stressed that “the Taiwan question” is central to China’s interests and “the first red line that must not be crossed in China-U.S. relations,” according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ account of the session.
Biden has said the U.S. would defend Taiwan militarily from a Chinese attack — remarks that prompted Beijing to increase pressure on the self-governing island following an August visit by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Xi’s consolidation of power at last month’s National Party Congress came with a pledge to reunify Taiwan with the mainland, if necessary, by force. Taken together, the rhetoric from each side sparked fears of a miscalculation that could draw the world’s two largest economies into an armed conflict.
After their Bali meeting, Biden again condemned Beijing’s actions toward the island as undermining stability.
He also said he made clear to Xi that the U.S.’s “One China” policy has not changed and that he opposed any unilateral modifications to the status quo from either side.
Still, with Republicans likely to gain control of the House, the White House may need to deal with a GOP majority that looks for more confrontation with Beijing. House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy, who is planning to run for Speaker, said he intends to visit Taipei next year.
—No New Cold War
Following Pelosi’s Taiwan visit, China cut off regular contacts with the U.S. on a range of core issues including military affairs and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. That raised the prospect of a more confrontational U.S.-China relationship, sparking unease in markets and countries across the region.
Biden on Monday tried to reassure not only Xi of his intention to responsibly manage the relationship but also U.S. allies in the Indo-Pacific. He announced the two countries would resume coordination across a range of issues, and that he was dispatching Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China to meet with senior officials. The visit is tentatively planned for early next year, according to a senior State Department official.
“I absolutely believe there need not be a new Cold War,” Biden said at a press conference following his sitdown with Xi.
Biden scored a victory when Xi jointly voiced opposition with him to Moscow’s potential use of nuclear weapons amid fears Russia could deploy a “dirty bomb” in Ukraine, and blame the attack on Kyiv. That bolstered a warning CIA Director William Burns was set to deliver to his Russian counterpart on Monday during a meeting in Turkey.
—Leaders Display Warm Tone
For the two leaders, the Bali meeting marked a shift to a warmer tone from the often frosty statements volleyed across the Pacific from their governments in Washington and Beijing.
After customary handshakes and back-pats, the two regaled each other by reminiscing about their long, shared history, forged when each was serving as his nation’s vice president.
And following the meeting, both sides seemed intent on signaling that it had proved a worthwhile exchange.
“We were candid and clear with one another across the board,” Biden said, adding that the Chinese leader was “direct and straightforward” in their talks. The U.S. president said he thought Xi was willing to compromise on issues.
The Chinese side called the talks “candid, in-depth, and constructive.”
—Reining in North Korea
Biden told Xi the Chinese president had an “obligation” to discourage North Korea from conducting long-range nuclear tests, and that if they continued, the U.S. might have to step up its military presence in the region.
“We would have to take certain actions that would be more defensive on our behalf,” Biden told reporters. “It would not be directed against China.”
The U.S. in the past has looked to China, North Korea’s largest trading partner, to rein in Pyongyang, but that channel had been more difficult to use as the relationship between Washington and Beijing deteriorated this year.
Biden consulted with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol over the weekend about the increased pace of North Korea’s missile tests in the region.
—Climate Talks Restarting
Both the U.S. and China stressed the need to work together to tackle the climate crisis following the meeting, suggesting they would resume climate talks that Beijing suspended in response to Pelosi’s Taiwan visit.
The White House said in a summary of the meeting that the leaders agreed to task senior officials with maintaining communication on climate change and other shared challenges.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was in both nations’ interest to tackle climate change in a cooperative manner.
A resumption of working-level talks on climate change could help one of the few spots where the U.S. and China have worked collaboratively in recent years. Former President Barack Obama and Xi agreed to commit to the Paris climate accord that has become the framework for the world’s effort to combat climate change, and last week China’s climate envoy told the COP27 conference in Egypt that the nation remained committed to the vision of carbon neutrality.
