Biden and Xi meet – but an incident overshadows the talks

Washington, Beijing Both leaders had friendly words for each other, even if the relations between their countries are stuck in the deepest crisis for decades. “I’m really glad to see you again,” said US President Joe Biden shortly before his detailed meeting with China’s head of state and party leader Xi Jinping. “I look forward to working with you,” Xi also said. Stable relations are “for the good of our countries and the world at large”.

During the pandemic, you only had to do with each other virtually. The last handshake was five years ago, when Biden, who was not yet president, and Xi met at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Since then, US-China relations have only gone downhill. The meeting in Bali lasted three hours and could be the first step towards a new approach. “We spoke very bluntly to each other,” Biden explained afterwards.