Majors United States and China They started their first online meeting on Tuesday morning.

“We both bear a responsibility towards the world and towards our countries so that our competition does not turn into a conflict,” he said. Joe Biden at the beginning of the meeting.

The US President stated that it is important for both countries to communicate clearly, and announced that he also intends to clarify his concerns about China, from human rights to the situation in the Indo-Pacific region.

Xi Jinping Biden welcomed him as an “old friend” and stressed that the world needed stable relations between the United States and China and their peaceful coexistence. He expressed the hope that the two countries would increase the intensity of communication and cooperation between them.

“Humanity lives in a global village, and together we face many challenges,” Xi said. – China I the United States He added that he needed more communication and cooperation.

Before the meeting, representatives of the White House declared that no tangible results should be expected from him, and that the goal of the summit was “responsible management of competition.”

– This meeting is important because it is about defining the terms of this competition in two main areas: first, ensuring that competition does not turn into conflict (…) Second, adherence to international rules – said a high-level representative of the administration during a press conference before the summit.

The subject of discussion is – according to a White House spokeswoman Jin Psaki It can last up to several hours – many contentious issues are expected between the powers, ranging from “China’s provocative behavior toward Taiwan,” to unfair trade practices, cybersecurity and human rights, including the persecution of Uyghurs in Xinjiang. The White House said Biden would be “honest” in expressing his views on these issues.

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It will be one of the topics too Fighting climate change And a joint statement by the US and China adopted at the recently concluded COP26 summit in Glasgow. Biden intends to encourage Xi to continue to be involved in this area, but also notes that he does not treat Chinese cooperation in this area as a favor.

Tuesday’s online meeting has arrived here The first direct meeting between Xi and BidenAlthough the two had met many times before, before assuming power in their respective countries. Their last contact was during a phone call in August.