Biden-Xi meeting: political turning point or temporary truce?
In a meeting that brought together US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for the first time in more than a year, the two competing powers sought to overcome deep-rooted differences between them and take a pragmatic look at to the repercussions of the raging economic crisis. conflicts over their individual and common interests.
The Washington report, which is the result of cooperation between Asharq Al-Awsat and Al-Sharq, examines the most important files on which agreements have been reached and other pending files, as well as the fate of bilateral relations and the impact of this openness in the channels of dialogue on internal crises and international conflicts.
The “most important” bilateral relationship.
The former American diplomat and professor at American University, William Lawrence, defined the meeting between Biden and Xi as “positive”, believing that its simple conduct is a good indicator given the presence of “a long list of pending issues and points of tension between the two countries”, but Lawrence stressed that reaching an agreement on the drug fentanyl does not have much importance compared to the agreement on the resumption of direct military communication channels between the two countries, adding: “This dialogue is extremely important. From a geopolitical point of view, this is the most important relationship in the world.”
For his part, Saurabh Gupta, senior researcher at the Institute of Sino-American Studies, underlined the importance of having “open communication channels between the two countries to try to resolve problems should they arise”, and recalled the he Chinese balloon incident when Biden tried to communicate with his Chinese counterpart, but there was no response. Gupta spoke about the importance of military communication, saying: “China often hesitates to establish this type of military communication; Because it believes this legitimizes the presence of the United States near its borders. Thus, this agreement indicates that China is addressing the issue as a confidence-building measure with the United States and a desire to stabilize relations to reduce dangerous confrontation.
The drug fentanyl
The two sides reached an agreement on the drug fentanyl, which flooded American markets, which included a Chinese commitment to try to limit the production of this drug by Chinese companies.
Zoe Liu, a researcher specializing in Chinese studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, spoke about the importance of this issue for Biden in a heated election season in which he faces harsh criticism regarding its use, with the spread of the drug having reaped lives of thousands of Americans, but stressed that the issue is not that important to the Chinese president. She doubts the nature of the implementation of the agreement, saying: “I am not entirely sure whether this meeting at the presidential level will provide the required solution, for two reasons: first; Because fentanyl is part of the very high profit margin business. “Secondly, when we look at fentanyl manufacturers, they are private individuals, and China banned the illicit use and trade of fentanyl in the country in 2019. Therefore, the pharmaceutical industry in China has become somewhat illegal”.
Lawrence agrees that the fentanyl issue is important to the US president, noting that China “hasn’t had to make many concessions in this regard.” “Xi will not have to make many concessions, he will start by taking some slow measures,” he said. Approving an agreement of this type is a symbolic step that does not cost him much.”
Lawrence spoke about drugs entering US territory through Latin America, believing that turns the issue into a border security issue that Republicans are pushing to reform. He added: “The border issue is an important issue in the United States at a time when Biden is facing a difficult election cycle, and it is important for him to say that he has somehow managed to address the issue of cross-border drug trafficking. ,” but Gupta spoke of a different approach to the fentanyl issue, pointing out that China has asked the United States to lift sanctions imposed by the Trump administration on the Institute of Forensic Affairs, the fentanyl-related law enforcement body, as fundamental condition for having responded in the drug case.
This is what the US administration did after announcing the agreement. Sanctions were lifted against the aforementioned institute, adding: “This is the way the relationship should be built, so that it reflects mutual respect.”
“Tired” economy.
US officials repeat claims that China constitutes a strategic competitor to the United States. Liu points out that this expression began in 2017, when the National Security Council identified China as a strategic competitor. He added: “Most of these claims are based on the premise that the Chinese economy will continue to grow and will one day surpass that of the United States,” but today the Chinese economy is going through critical phases due to the slow recovery from the Chinese economy. repercussions of the “Corona” pandemic, which led to “a reversal of growth momentum between the United States and China,” Liu said. He added: “Maybe it’s time for Washington to reconsider its policy towards China: what will happen if the Chinese economy becomes stagnant or if it faces some kind of Japanese influence?” “So from this perspective, I think it is very important that President Xi Jinping emphasizes his desire for stable US-China relations in order to provide much-needed confidence to the Chinese economy.”
For his part, Lawrence indicated that China has begun to withdraw its investments from Africa and the Middle East, to focus on Central Asia and Iran. He said: “All these changes create many opportunities for dialogue, solutions and revitalization of the relationship. Because the issue is not that America wins and China loses, but rather that China’s growth policies are changing dramatically, and that’s what American policies need too… as part of this relationship between two major powers in the world.”
International conflicts
In light of the Sino-Iranian rapprochement, the Biden administration has asked for Beijing’s help to pressure Tehran not to broaden the scope of the conflict in the Middle East, especially with the escalation of attacks by Iranian proxies against Iranian interests. Americans in the region. Gupta stressed that China, despite its major investments in the region, is still “a rather marginal player in the grand scheme of Middle East politics.” He explained by saying: “China is not in a mediating position… It can play the role of facilitator, but what the Americans want is for it to use its good relations with Iran to restrain it.” Gupta pointed out that “China and the United States have two different views on the issue of Israel and Palestine. Although they support the two-state solution, the United States’ support for Israel is much stronger.”
Gupta says the American-Chinese difference in foreign policy also extends to the Russian-Ukrainian war. He rejects the approach of some American politicians who compare the Taiwan issue to Ukraine, stressing that there are big differences between them. Gupta explains: “Speaking of Ukraine, China’s position in the war in Ukraine is similar to that in the war in Gaza. China plays a marginal role in European security engineering and there is not much it can do. It is trying to be creative in this context by taking advantage of the good relations it has with Russia, and can play a useful role if a ceasefire is reached. “If France and the United States manage to bring Ukraine to the negotiating table, the China can put pressure on Russia to reach some sort of political agreement.”