Barack Obama to meet Xi Jinping in Beijing during three-day Asia trip
Former US president arrived in Shanghai on Tuesday, giving a speech at a business event
Former US president Barack Obama will return to the world stage when he meets Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on a three-day trip to Asia – his first to the region since leaving office.
He is due to meet Xi in Beijing on Wednesday after beginning his trip with meetings and speaking engagements in Shanghai, his office said in a statement.
Their meeting comes weeks after Xi hosted US President Donald Trump during a high-profile visit to the Chinese capital.
Obama “looks forward to catching up with his former counterpart” Xi as they have cultivated a “close and cooperative partnership” on issues such as economic development and combating climate change, the statement said.
The two leaders have previously met on multiple occasions, most recently at the annual Group of 20 summit in Hangzhou last September. Xi also travelled to meet Obama during the Annenberg Retreat in California in 2013.
Relations between Obama and Xi were outwardly positive, but were underscored by tensions over human rights in China and Beijing’s maritime claims in the South China Sea.