Thread by @RnaudBertrand

In what's likely an extremely consequential meeting, this is what Xi told Biden according to the Chinese readout of their meeting (). I think anyone who wishes to understand China's standpoint wrt to the US should read this:

- There are 2 options for China and the U.S. going forward:
either 1) "enhance solidarity and cooperation and join hands to meet global challenges and promote global security and prosperity"
or 2) "cling to the zero-sum mentality, provoke rivalry and confrontation, and drive the world toward turmoil and division"

- To highlight the extreme importance of this Xi stressed that "the two choices point to two different directions that will decide the future of humanity and Planet Earth."

- He said that "China’s development is driven by its inherent logic and dynamics. China will not take the old path of colonization and plundering, or the wrong path of seeking hegemony with growing strength. It does not export its ideology, or engage in ideological confrontation with any country."

- He sought to reassure the US that "China does not have a plan to surpass or unseat the U.S. Likewise, the U.S. should not scheme to suppress and contain China." The reason why is because "mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation are the lessons we learned from 50 years of China-U.S. relations as well as the conflicts between major countries in history. China and the U.S. should put in a lot of efforts to follow them."

- For the purpose of achieving "solidarity and cooperation" instead of "rivalry and confrontation" he proposed the following 5 steps/principles:
1) "Jointly developing a right perception. China is consistently committed to having a stable, healthy and sustainable relationship with the U.S." But "at the same time, China has interests that must be safeguarded, principles that must be upheld, and red lines that must not be crossed."
2) "Jointly managing disagreements effectively. It is important that they appreciate each other’s principles and red lines, and refrain from flip-flopping, being provocative, and crossing the lines. China and the U.S. should have more communications, more dialogues and more consultations, and calmly handle their differences as well as accidents."
3) "Jointly advancing mutually beneficial cooperation. It is important to fully utilize the restored and new mechanisms in foreign policy, economy, finance, commerce, agriculture and other fields, and carry out cooperation in such areas as counternarcotics, judicial and law enforcement affairs, AI, and science and technology."
4) "Jointly shouldering responsibilities as major countries. China and the U.S. should lead by example, step up coordination and cooperation on international and regional issues, and provide more public goods for the world."
5) "Jointly promoting people-to-people exchanges. The two sides should increase direct flights, advance tourism cooperation, expand subnational exchanges, strengthen educational cooperation, and encourage & support greater interactions & communication between their people."

Xi also expanded on China's "interests that must be safeguarded, principles that must be upheld, and red lines that must not be crossed":
- He pointed out that "the Taiwan question remains the most important and most sensitive issue in China-U.S. relations. China takes seriously the positive statements made by the U.S. in the Bali meeting." He said that "the U.S. side should take real actions to honor its commitment of not supporting 'Taiwan independence', stop arming Taiwan, and support China’s peaceful reunification. China will realize reunification, and this is unstoppable."
- He also said that "U.S. actions against China regarding export control, investment screening and unilateral sanctions seriously hurt China’s legitimate interests." He considers that "stifling China’s technological progress is nothing but a move to contain China’s high-quality development and deprive the Chinese people of their right to development."
- He highlighted that despite U.S. efforts "China’s development and growth, driven by its own inherent logic, will not be stopped by external forces." He told Biden that "it is important that the U.S. side take China’s concerns seriously and adopt tangible steps to lift its unilateral sanctions so as to provide an equal, fair and nondiscriminatory environment for Chinese businesses."

That's about it. If one were to summarize, this was Xi trying to make Biden understand both countries and the world at large would be much better off if they cooperated instead of confronted each other, and making it clear that some red lines were being crossed (Taiwan and attempts to contain China’s development).

Knowing Biden and the neocons around him, it's sadly a fair bet this fell on deaf ears... Although I do believe that with Ukraine and Israel, they'll probably look to stabilize things for a while given they have their hands full with their existing wars.

https://x.com/SpokespersonCHN/status/1724931557381849112

The US readout of the meeting () is unsurprisingly much less constructive and inspiring. It has Biden telling Xi:

- We're not doing this "solidarity and cooperation" stuff you're talking about and we're mobilizing a bloc to compete with you and what you stand for: "The US and China are in competition, noting that the United States would continue to invest in the sources of American strength at home and align with allies and partners around the world.  He stressed that the United States would always stand up for its interests, its values, and its allies and partners.  He reiterated that the world expects the United States and China to manage competition responsibly to prevent it from veering into conflict, confrontation, or a new Cold War."

- The readout highlights a few concrete achievements of the meeting, mainly the "resumption of bilateral cooperation to combat global illicit drug manufacturing and trafficking" as well as "the resumption of high-level military-to-military communication". It also underscores "the need to address the risks of advanced AI systems and improve AI safety through U.S.-China government talks".

- With the usual disguised language, he essentially said he'd seek to preserve American hegemony and fight China's influence in its own neighborhood: "President Biden underscored the United States’ support for a free and open Indo-Pacific that is connected, prosperous, secure, and resilient.  The President reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to defending our Indo-Pacific allies.  The President emphasized the United States’ enduring commitment to freedom of navigation and overflight, adherence to international law, maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea and East China Sea, and the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."

- He highlighted the US's commitment to Ukraine and Israel: "President Biden reaffirmed that the United States, alongside allies and partners, will continue to support Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression, to ensure Ukraine emerges from this war as a democratic, independent, sovereign, and prosperous nation that can deter and defend itself against future aggression." Interesting to note there's nothing about getting Ukraine's territory back anymore, which might suggest the US has given up on this objective... Regarding Israel Biden said he "reiterated U.S. support for Israel’s right to defend itself against terrorism and emphasized the importance of all countries using their influence to prevent escalation and expansion of the conflict"

- There was of course the usual lecture on values: "President Biden underscored the universality of human rights and the responsibility of all nations to respect their international human rights commitments. He raised concerns regarding PRC human rights abuses, including in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong."

- On Taiwan Biden said that "our one China policy has not changed and has been consistent across decades and administrations." Which anyone who knows anything about the issue knows is a bold-face lie. The US's One-China policy has radically changed under Biden. Him sticking to this line of argument - which is a denial of the truth - isn't exactly reassuring...

- Biden also essentially said he'd continue its efforts to stifle China technological and economic development: "the United States will continue to take necessary actions to prevent advanced U.S. technologies from being used to undermine our own national security, without unduly limiting trade and investment."

So yeah... I might be on the pessimistic side but it looks like between Xi's 2 options - "solidarity and cooperation" and "rivalry and confrontation" - Biden pretty clearly favors the 2nd one. With maybe a temporary pause right now due to the US having its hands full.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/…

And Biden insulted Xi right after the meeting 🤦

https://x.com/unusual_whales/status/1724972165634916838?s=20