Biden and Xi meet for talks ahead of G20 summit

On Monday, Xi Jinping, China’s President, will arrive on the island Bali, Indonesia, for a long-awaitied meeting with the United States President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the G20 Summit.

Biden and Xi, who have made five phone or video calls since January 2021, when Biden took over as president, had last met in person before during the Obama administration, when Biden was vice president.

During a speech delivered at the East Asia Summit in Cambodia, Biden said that the United States would actively compete with China, "ensuring competition does not veer into conflict," and stressed the importance of peace in the Taiwan Strait. The U.S. president arrived in Bali on Sunday night.

Tensions between the superpowers have recently reached a peak in decades, intensifying in recent years over numerous disagreements, ranging from quarrels about Hong Kong and Taiwan as well as South China Sea, to trade practices and restrictions imposed by the US on Chinese technology.

The White House said the meeting is unlikely to result in a joint decision, but it could help calm bilateral relations. The two leaders will attend the opening of the G20 summit on Tuesday.