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President Joe Biden and China's Xi Jinping are considering meeting in person, said a senior US official after the leaders finished a phone discussion on Thursday.
Both the leaders engaged in "direct and honest" discussions concerning Taiwan and the elimination of US tariffs on Chinese imports did not come up in the talk, which was approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes long.
“They discussed the value of meeting face-to-face and agreed to have their teams follow up to find a mutually agreeable time to do so,” the official said, according to a White House transcript. “From my perspective, there was very much a clear, affirmative agenda that was put forward and agreed to.”
Xi has been invited to Indonesia for a Group of 20 major economies summit in November, making it a possible location for a face-to-face encounter.
The Chinese official did not indicate that Xi and Biden mentioned US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's intentions to visit Taiwan, which the governing Communist Party claims have no authority to conduct diplomatic affairs, Financial Times reported.
During the call on Thursday, China's leader remained adamant on the implications of supporting Taiwan's independence.
“Resolutely safeguarding China’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity is the firm will of the more than 1.4 billion Chinese people,” Xi said during the call.
“Those who play with fire will perish by it,” the statement cited Xi.” “It is hoped that the U.S. will be clear-eyed about this.”
According to official readouts from China and the White House, Biden said during his talk with Xi that the United States' position toward Taiwan has not changed.
Picture Credits: Reuters
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