Vice President Kamala Harris bumped shoulders with Chinese President Xi Jinping before the start of the second day of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leader meetings in Bangkok.
Their discussion, described as brief by the White House, builds on President Joe Biden‘s three-hour sit down with Xi before this week’s G-20 leaders summit in Bali, Indonesia.
BIDEN-XI MEETING UNDERSCORES DISCORD OVER TAIWAN
“The vice president noted a key message that President Biden emphasized in his Nov. 14 meeting with President Xi: We must maintain open lines of communication to responsibly manage the competition between our countries,” a senior administration official told reporters Saturday morning local time.
Xi’s return to the world stage, excluding his appearance alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi last fall at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Uzbekistan, has been marred by a viral video of him confronting Justin Trudeau over allegations the Canadian prime minister leaked details of their private tete-a-tete to the press. The Chinese Foreign Ministry later downplayed the exchange, contending Xi was not “criticizing or blaming anyone.”
Biden and Xi’s meeting has been praised for tamping down tensions between the pair and their respective countries, exacerbated by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi‘s (D-CA) August trip to Taiwan, as the United States seeks “guard rails” for its interactions with China.
“We’ll defend American interests and values, promote universal human rights, and stand up for the international order — and work in lockstep with our allies and partners,” Biden said during a press conference in Indonesia. “We’re going to compete vigorously. But I’m not looking for conflict. I’m looking to manage this competition responsibly.”
But Biden has been scrutinized for skipping APEC, essentially ceding this year’s event to Xi before the U.S. is set to host it in 2023.
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Harris is expected to speak with Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha later Saturday before holding a climate change roundtable and heading to Manila, Philippines, with second gentleman Douglas Emhoff on Sunday.
