During the three and a half hours of online dialogue described by the White House as `respectful, frank and open` on November 16, US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping did not make any specific commitments.
No decision to reverse the policy was announced after the meeting.
From the beginning, the US did not expect bilateral relations to enter a new chapter after just one meeting, emphasizing that the important thing is that the conference helps the two governments draw clear lines in relations and avoid conflicts.
`We need to establish reasonable safety barriers, say clearly and sincerely what we disagree with, and coordinate on issues of common interest,` President Biden said.
The only consensus message broadcast after the conference was that US-China competition must not escalate into conflict `whether intentional or unintentional`, according to President Biden.
`Both the US and China are in an extremely important stage of development. Humanity is like a global village and we must face challenges together. As the world’s two largest economies and permanent members
Chinese leaders emphasized that stable Beijing-Washington relations are a necessary condition for an international peaceful environment.
However, communiqués from Washington and Beijing, as well as what was revealed by officials of the two countries after the meeting, show that the US and China still have many deep differences on a series of issues.
`It seems that both sides do not want tensions to get out of control, but they are not willing to give in to each other’s positions,` commented Jan Ian Chong, an Asian security expert at the National University of Singapore.
President Joe Biden and US officials attended an online summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping on November 16.
The Taiwan issue is proof that the two sides cannot yet agree on a stance on this security hot spot, but can only draw limits for each other.
Biden reaffirmed America’s commitment to the `One China` principle in relations with Beijing, but did not forget to remind Mr. Xi that it would be difficult for the United States to leave alone if China reunified the island by force.
Meanwhile, Xinhua cited Mr. Xi’s warning that elements promoting independence for the island `play with fire and one day they will burn their hands.`
China has always considered Taiwan a part of its territory and reunification is only a matter of time.
China has recently continuously organized air force and naval exercises in the Taiwan Strait and around the island.
A few hours before the US-China summit on November 16, Taiwan’s defense agency detected at least six Chinese aircraft entering the island’s air defense identification zone.
Strategic stability concerns, including nuclear weapons, were also mentioned at the online summit.
Similar concerns were discussed by President Barack Obama with Beijing, including nuclear weapons, cybersecurity and aerospace.
According to Sullivan, nuclear weapons and hypersonic missiles are sensitive issues and have long-term impacts, greatly affecting US national security.
China has recently tested a number of hypersonic missiles, making the US intelligence and defense community increasingly concerned.
`We tried many ways to resolve this concern under Obama, but the Chinese side always waited for time and did not have serious dialogue,` said Evan Medeiros, former White House official in charge of the President’s China affairs.
Chinese President Xi Jinping waved to US President Joe Biden during the online summit on November 16.
In addition to the content on national security and defense, bilateral trade relations also `heated up` the 3.5-hour meeting between the two leaders.
US officials affirmed that trade did not take up too much time in the talks, but the issue of economic interests was clearly shown through the participants in the meeting.
According to Xinhua’s announcement, Mr. Xi asked Washington not to politicize economic relations and opposed the US using national security tools to put pressure on Chinese companies.
`The US should stop abusing the concept of national security to oppress Chinese businesses. China and the US need to maintain communication on macroeconomic policies, support world economic recovery, and protect the two countries.`
Meanwhile, President Biden reaffirmed the focus of his term on protecting American workers and economic sectors from China’s `unfair trade and economic practices`.
He reminded Beijing to fully implement its commitments in the Phase One trade agreement, signed under his predecessor Donald Trump to end the bilateral trade war.
Some knowledgeable sources revealed that President Biden has asked China to cooperate in opening crude oil reserves, helping to stabilize the volatile world crude oil market.
The Biden administration is under a lot of pressure to reconsider energy policy when inflation exceeded 5% in the past half year.
Responding to People’s Daily on November 16, Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Ta Phong praised the talks between the two leaders as `constructive and effective`.
Mr. Ta noted that building a `safety fence` for bilateral relations, as President Biden called it, requires `equal consultation, consensus and mutual compliance from both countries, instead of one side.`
Hannah