In office for three weeks, US President Joe Biden telephoned his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for the first time on Wednesday evening, according to an announcement made by The White House. On the menu, several topics including the business practices that divide their two countries, and the issue of human rights.
According to The White House, Joe Biden has expressed his “deep concerns” about Beijing’s “unfair and coercive” economic practices. He also mentioned the repression in Hong Kong, the human rights violations of the Uighur minority in Xinjiang, and the increasingly imposing place taken by Beijing in the region, in particular vis-à-vis Taiwan.
According to a report published by the Xinhua news agency, Chinese President Xi Jinping, for his part, indicated that a confrontation between China and the United States would be a “disaster” for their two countries and the world, before d ‘call his new counterpart to the resumption of the dialogue. In addition, the Chinese leader remained firm on the questions around Taiwan, Hong Kong and Xinjiang, estimating that “it is the internal affairs of China”. And to call on the new US administration to “act with caution” on matters relating to the sovereignty of its country.
In addition, topics related to climate change, nuclear proliferation and the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic were also raised by the two men. “I told him that I will work with China when it benefits the American people,” Joe Biden said on Twitter.
