Xi Jinping meets IOC chief in Chinese leader’s first talks with foreign dignitary in nearly 2 years

Chinese president has not left country since the start of the pandemic and his last meeting with an international leader was in February 2020

Xi and Thomas Bach praise preparations for the Beijing Winter Olympics

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Chinese President Xi Jinping meets International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach on Tuesday. Photo: Handout

Published: 9:55pm, 25 Jan 2022

Chinese President Xi Jinping met International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach on Tuesday, the first foreign dignitary Xi has received since the Covid-19 pandemic erupted two years ago.

The meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse comes 10 days before the official opening of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

In footage of the indoor meeting aired by state broadcaster CCTV, neither Xi nor Bach were seen wearing masks for the talks but put them on during the photo sessions. They also did not shake hands or touch elbows.

Xi’s last face-to-face meeting with a foreign dignitary was on February 27, 2020 when he met former Mongolia president Khaltmaa Battulga at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

The Chinese leader has not left the country since visiting Myanmar in January that year.

Bach arrived in Beijing on Saturday and went on a three-day isolation before his meeting with Xi. Other world leaders and dignitaries expected include Russian President Vladimir Putin, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, and Polish President Andrzej Duda.