Is the possibility of Mr. Biden meeting Mr. Xi in person “quite certain”?

Both Mr. Xi and Mr. Biden stressed the importance of face-to-face diplomacy and expressed hope that US-China relations could be put on the right track.

The White House is planning a face-to-face meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in San Francisco next month, the Washington Post reported on October 5, citing senior US administration officials.

According to the US newspaper, one of the senior officials said that the possibility of a meeting between the two leaders was "quite certain".

“We are starting the process” of planning the meeting, the Washington Post quoted the official as saying.

Another official told the Washington, DC-based newspaper that Mr. Biden is looking forward to meeting with Mr. Xi, but “nothing has been confirmed.” Plans will be solidified after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visits the United States in the coming weeks.

Experts see the 30th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in San Francisco this November as the setting for this highly anticipated meeting.

But China has yet to say whether Xi will attend the APEC summit. Previous high-profile international events, including the G20 summit in New Delhi, India, and the 78th United Nations General Assembly in New York, have been attended by Biden while Xi has been absent.

The US-China summit, if held, would be the second since last year and comes as the two superpowers seek to stabilize relations strained over a range of issues, including Taiwan, espionage allegations and trade and investment restrictions.

US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping meet on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Bali, Indonesia, November 14, 2022. Photo: Al Jazeera

During their first face-to-face meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia last November, both Biden and Xi stressed the importance of face-to-face diplomacy and expressed hope that US-China relations could be put on the right track.

But after Mr Biden ordered the shooting down of a Chinese balloon flying over US territory in February, relations between the two countries became even more tense.

In an effort to smooth relations, four top Biden administration officials have traveled to Beijing in recent months, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and climate envoy John F. Kerry.

Last month, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan held two days of talks with Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Malta. The White House described those conversations as “candid, substantive, and constructive.”

More recently, Mr. Blinken met with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng on the sidelines of the 78th United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week in New York.

However, communication between top US military officials and their Chinese counterparts remains frozen despite repeated requests from the US side.

China's top security agency hinted last month that any meeting between Mr Xi and Mr Biden would depend on the US "showing sufficient sincerity".

The Chinese Embassy in Washington DC did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The White House had no immediate comment .

Minh Duc (According to Washington Post, Reuters)

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