On Saturday, Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden met in Lima, Peru on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit. The meeting was their third in-person, and likely their last as leaders of their respective countries. China-U.S. bilateral relations are expected to enter a much more volatile period following Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election earlier this month. Alluding to Trump’s hawkish economic plans vis-a-vis China, Xi stated that “neither decoupling nor supply chain disruption is a solution,” and he called on APEC members to “tear down the walls impeding the flow of trade.” Mark Magnierin and Igor Patrick at the South China Morning Post described how Xi drew a veiled contrast between his and Trump’s visions for the future:
While Donald Trump was not mentioned by name in the 20-minute speech delivered at the CEO summit, the American president-elect’s expected global impact was the clear subtext, as it has been throughout the week.
[…] “The world is entering a phase of rapid transformation marked by increasing protectionism, geopolitical tensions and challenges to globalisation,” said Xi in remarks read out by Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao.
“These challenges test our ability to foster economic cooperation and navigate the structural demands of growth and development.”
Despite the headwinds and setbacks, Xi argued, economic globalisation remained an unalterable trend. The Chinese leader said that to block globalisation and promote isolationism with “all sorts of excuses” would be “nothing but back-pedalling”.
Growth must be inclusive, dynamic and sustainable, he added, rather than benefiting “a few countries” – an unmistakable reference to the US and the potential erosion of its leadership under an “America-first” Trump administration.
[…] On other fronts, Xi urged economies to pursue global rules and economic cooperation, drawing another distinction with Trump’s well-known distrust of multilateralism. [Source]
Despite the increased confrontation expected under a Trump presidency, Xi stated that “China is ready to work with the new U.S. administration to maintain communication, expand cooperation and manage differences.” He also noted that the past four years have contained “ups and downs” between the two countries. Both the Chinese and American readouts emphasized the need for stability in their bilateral relationship going forward. Frances Mao at the BBC outlined some of the main differences and continuities between Biden and Trump’s positions on China:
Analysts say US-China relations could become more volatile when Trump returns to office in two months, driven by factors including a promise to raise tariffs on Chinese imports.
The president-elect has pledged 60% tariffs on all imports from China. He has also appointed prominent China hawks to top foreign and defence positions.
During his first term, Trump labelled Beijing a “strategic competitor”. Relations worsened when he labelled Covid a “Chinese virus” during the pandemic.
[…] But Biden’s White House also continued Trump-era tariffs. His government imposed duties in May targeting China’s electric cars, solar panels and steels.
He also strengthened defence alliances across Asia and the Pacific to counter China’s increasing assertiveness in the region. The outgoing president has also said the US would defend Taiwan if it were invaded by China. [Source]
One point made by Xi during his meeting with Biden, and later amplified by Xinhua, caught the attention of many observers: “The Taiwan question, democracy and human rights, the system, and rights to development are China’s four red lines, which allow no challenge.” Some observers noted that “democracy and human rights” have rarely if ever been mentioned as an explicit red line for China in discussions with the U.S. and argued that their inclusion sends a message to the incoming Trump administration. Others wondered if it could be a warning to Republican hawks who favor moves to foster regime change in China. Still others suggested it showed China’s confidence in redefining those terms to its advantage.
According to the U.S. readout, Biden only briefly and generally touched on human rights, and did not mention Xinjiang, Tibet, or Hong Kong, as he did in their previous meeting last year. Instead, Biden raised concerns over Beijing’s support for Russia’s war against Ukraine, and he reiterated the U.S.’s opposition to any unilateral change to the status quo on Taiwan. Jarrett Renshaw and Trevor Hunnicutt reported for Reuters that Biden and Xi also made an important public affirmation to limit the use of certain military technology:
“The two leaders affirmed the need to maintain human control over the decision to use nuclear weapons,” the White House said in a statement. “The two leaders also stressed the need to consider carefully the potential risks and develop AI technology in the military field in a prudent and responsible manner.”
[…] It was not clear whether the statement would lead to further talks or action on the issue. But it marks a first-of-its-kind step between the two countries in the discussion of two issues on which progress has been elusive: nuclear arms and artificial intelligence.
Washington has been pushing Beijing for months to break a longstanding resistance to nuclear arms talks.
The two countries briefly resumed official-level talks over nuclear arms in November but those negotiations have since stalled, with a top U.S. official publicly expressing frustration regarding China’s responsiveness. [Source]
