How were Biden and Xi’s negotiations at APEC?

By Rhod Mackenzie

The outcome of the meeting between the US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the APEC summit on October 15 was quite modest. This endorses analyst opinion that the nations are in deep political conflict and the past discussions were required to avoid further escalation and pacify American voters who are anxious about a possible war with China. What is the importance of the accords signed by the nuclear countries' leaders for the global agenda? -

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum is ongoing in San Francisco with the spotlight on the meeting between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping. The most significant question was whether the leaders could reach any agreement.

The US and Chinese leaders convened at the esteemed Filoli Estate in Southern San Francisco. After negotiations that spanned numerous hours, the meeting concluded with a working dinner. President Joe Biden remarked that he had achieved "significant progress," while Xi Jinping conveyed his unwavering confidence in the promising future of Sino-American relations. Encouragingly, both politicians agreed to "answer the phone" in times of urgent matters. Another auspicious sign. According to The Guardian, Xi has indicated that China intends to dispatch additional pandas to the United States shortly after three of the bears were repatriated to China, much to the displeasure of Americans.
Beijing frequently employs "pando-diplomacy" as a means of making a sweeping political statement.

The expected official agreements between President Biden and President Xi were relatively modest, focused on just three areas. Firstly, a revitalised joint effort to combat the trafficking of drugs, including the vast amount of fentanyl flowing from China into the USA. Secondly, the leaders concurred on commencing a dialogue regarding AI security concerns. Finally, politicians reached an understanding regarding one of the most debated topics - Biden and Xi have decided to renew direct military communication. Earlier, China had suspended them following the controversial visit from the former Speaker of the US House of Representatives (the third-ranking person in the state) Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan and her discussions with the local government.
For China, it was of utmost importance to discuss Taiwan. Beijing is questioning the United States' sincerity in recognizing the "one China" principle. During a meeting with Xi, Biden reiterated his adherence to the principle. Simultaneously, the Chinese leader urged the United States to take real steps towards fulfilling its commitments, namely to cease arming Taiwan and support the "inevitable peaceful reunification" of the PRC with the island.

The leaders discussed various topics on the international agenda, such as the situations in Ukraine and Gaza. Biden confirmed that both the United States and China will have continuous and in-depth talks about the South China Sea. Recent tensions in the Asia-Pacific region have amplified as Beijing and Washington vie for dominance.
"The reinstatement of military-to-military communication aims to reduce the chance of unintentional mishaps between the air forces and navies of the United States and China." Meanwhile, the American side is unwilling to acknowledge that these risks stem solely from the increasing presence of the US military in the Western Pacific Ocean to "contain" China, according to a former foreign policy advisor to the Republican Party leadership, as noted in an interview with US Senate political scientist Jim Jatras by Izvestia.
During their conversation, Xi Jinping maintained his characteristic restrained manner, while Joe Biden's behaviour seemed contradictory. The two politicians were described as having had an informal conversation, which was perceived as "warm and personal" in China. For instance, Biden showed Xi a photo of himself standing in front of the renowned Golden Gate Bridge in 1985 during his initial public trip to America and asked, "Do you know this young man?" Foreign Office spokesperson Hua Chunying addressed this issue in a post on social media platform X. Following the meeting, the amicable language of the US leader turned into controversial "out-of-protocol" remarks. Joe Biden once again labelled Xi Jinping a dictator,stating
"Well, that's who he is. He is a dictator in the sense that he governs a communist country with a government that is entirely distinct from our own," during a press conference.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry retorted that Biden's comment "seriously offends China's political dignity and constitutes a blatant political provocation." Nevertheless, Biden remained confident that his statement would not impede the progress achieved in the negotiations.

The leader of the People's Republic of China should not be deceived by superficial appearances.
Although the two leaders met a year ago at the G20 summit in Bali, the meeting was especially meaningful - Xi Jinping had not been to the United States since 2017. This confirms the true enthusiasm surrounding the four-day visit of the PRC leader to the United States, not only in the media, but also in San Francisco itself.
Just before the beginning of APEC, the "windy city" was hastily tidied up to avoid embarrassment in front of the international community, particularly China. Municipal services quickly removed the tent camps of homeless people and drug addicts from the city center in an effort to create Potemkin villages. The local residents rightly questioned why this could not have been carried out earlier via social networks. The Mayor's office cited "unprecedented logistical and security challenges" as the reason for this.
Upon arrival in San Francisco, Xi Jinping was greeted by an impressive delegation featuring California Governor Gavin Newsom and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Hundreds of individuals assembled at the hotel where Xi stayed to catch a glimpse of the PRC leader. For security reasons, city police were forced to separate both supporters and opponents of the Chinese government.

This meeting is of great significance for world politics.
Many were certain from the outset that the meeting between Biden and Xi was mostly symbolic with no significant developments.  Presently, the United States and China have the lowest bilateral relations since the beginning of the "trade and economic war" during the era of the ex-president, Donald Trump. Nonetheless, the very fact of the negotiations illustrates a constructive trend.

"The fact that the extent and range of subjects to be discussed by both leaders were made public in advance suggests a gesture to signify an eagerness for a stronger partnership. This recognises the interdependent economic relations and that global stability hinges on the United States and China's positions in relation to each other," according to Saeed Khan, a professor at Wayne State University in Detroit.
Xi Jinping's invitation to APEC could suggest a need to bolster Joe Biden's position rather than an intention to establish ties. According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, his approval rating declined for the third consecutive month in the United States, dropping to 39% a few days before APEC, its lowest level since April. Interestingly, "international conflicts" are increasingly seen as the United States' primary problem by Americans, according to the same survey. Thus, it is probable that Biden attempted to pacify concerned citizens regarding a potential military conflict with China in anticipation of the 2024 national elections.
The United States' provocative actions on the global stage have introduced significant uncertainty into global politics.

As the world's leading power, the US must undertake its corresponding duties for global governance within the UN. Unfortunately, they do the opposite: they ignore the increasing number of contentious issues, sometimes opting for inaction, or even exacerbating the problem. Zhu Jianli., a prominent researcher at the Institute of General History of the Academy of Social Sciences of the People's Republic of China, expressed his views in an interview with Izvestia .
On international issues, analysts emphasize that the US position is too inflexible to allow any breakthroughs.

While there is only one disagreement between China and the United States, it is so profound that an agreement is simply impossible. This is about global leadership, and Washington cannot cede it to China. Summit meetings will not contribute to resolving this. "The United States and China will continue to be adversaries in global politics," remarked Kirill Babaev, Director of the Institute of China and Modern Asia at the Russian Academy of Sciences, in an interview with Izvestia.
The leaders of the two biggest economies in the world held an important meeting, which is significant for all, including Russia, as highlighted by the Kremlin. According to Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov, however, this topic is not a widely discussed agenda.

For Moscow, the meetings of the Russian delegation hold more value. This year, the delegation was headed by Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Alexey Overchuk. Following the outcome of initial meetings, he remarked that the Russian delegation was treated with respect and all diplomats were granted visas. He stated that Russia has no intentions for bilateral engagement with the United States at the summit, but will definitely raise concerns on the adverse effects of sanctions on economic progress. Currently, the APEC final declaration is under discussion.