President Joe Biden told Chinese President Xi Jinping they were both burdened with the responsibility of demonstrating that the two superpowers could cooperate on common interests despite a multitude of differences during their first in-person meeting of his administration.
“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 becoming anything ever near conflict, and to find ways to work together on urgent global issues that require our mutual cooperation,” Biden told his counterpart in Bali, Indonesia, Monday evening local time.
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“The world expects, I believe, China and the United States to play key roles in addressing global challenges, from climate changes to food insecurity, and for us to be able to work together,” he added. “The United States stands ready to do just that, work with you, if that’s what you desire.”
From his parallel table set up at the Mulia hotel, Xi expressed his desire for him and Biden to “chart the right course for the China-U.S. relationship … and elevate the relationship.”
“A statesman should think about and know where to lead his country,” he said against a backdrop of Chinese and U.S. flags, each president flanked by their respective aides. “He should also think about how to get along with other countries and the wider world.”
The pair earlier shook hands, Xi arriving first to greet Biden in one of the hotel’s hallways. The two smiled for the bank of TV and still cameras, Biden at one point placing his hand on Xi’s back.
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National security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters last weekend he anticipated the sit-down would last “a couple of hours.” Senior administration officials briefed the press Monday morning local time that Biden’s priority was establishing “guardrails” so that “we have clear rules of the road and that we do all of that to ensure that competition does not veer into conflict.”
