Xiangshan forum: questions about Biden-Xi Bali pledge hang over US-China Apec summit prospects
- Hopes for a meeting between the two presidents depend on open communication between senior officials, former Chinese envoy Cui Tiankai says
- Much work still to be done but climate change is one ‘expanding area of cooperation’
Giving his assessment at the Xiangshan defence forum in Beijing on Sunday, Cui hinted that February’s “spy balloon” incident was one of a number that impeded a commitment by the US and Chinese presidents to maintain open communication between their senior officials.
Joe Biden and Xi Jinping made the pledge on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Bali, Indonesia in November but “not long after, some accidents happened and created a lot of interference”, Cui said.
“I am afraid there is still a question mark over whether the Bali consensus reached by the two heads of state has been fully and genuinely put into practice,” he said.
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‘How to work it out’: Biden’s agenda for talks with Xi Jinping at G20 summit in Bali
A suspected Chinese surveillance balloon passed over the United States before being shot down by a US jet fighter on February 4. In the aftermath, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken pushed back a planned visit by several months.
