Xi Jinping set to raise Taiwan and Beijing Winter Olympic boycott calls at virtual summit with Joe Biden
- Tuesday’s meeting offers a chance to ease tensions, although neither side is expecting a breakthrough
- A series of meetings have laid the groundwork for the summit and one source says the two sides have resumed efforts to address a series of grievances
In what is expected to be their most extensive meeting since Biden took office, both sides have indicated their hope to use direct engagement between the two top leaders to stabilise ties amid their two countries’ intense rivalry across a broad range of areas from geopolitics to trade.
The summit, scheduled for early Tuesday morning Beijing time, comes after Xi consolidated his status at home at the Communist Party’s sixth plenum.
Next year both Xi and Biden are likely to spend a lot of energy focusing on their respective domestic agendas in the run-up to the 20th Party Congress and midterm elections, so next week’s meeting provides a rare space for the two to calm tensions and discuss the next stage of their relationship.
The virtual meeting comes amid simmering tensions over Taiwan and US concerns about China’s growing nuclear capabilities.
On Tuesday People’s Liberation Army joint forces conducted combat readiness drills in waters directly across from Taiwan, as a US congressional delegation arrived on the island for a surprise visit slammed by Beijing as a “rude interference” in its internal affairs.
