US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping. AFP Yonhap News
The US-China summit is expected to take place next week. It’s been 10 months since Joe Biden took office. However, this time, Chinese President Xi Jinping insisted on a video conference rather than face-to-face. Why is China, which had been hesitating, only now holding a summit with the United States?
① Finished the 6th round and showed off its equality with the United States
Xinhua News Agency of China introduced a large number of reports announcing Xi’s deeds ahead of the sixth plenary session on the 6th, which will end the preparations for the third term of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Twitter Capture
For China, this meeting is well-timed. On the 11th, with the 6th plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of Korea (the 6th plenary session), President Xi, who finished preparations for long-term power, can maximize the political effect by directing a scene where he stands shoulder to shoulder with his competitor, the United States.
Xi previously had phone calls with President Biden in February and September. Whenever the U.S. tried to mobilize an alliance, it used a communication channel between the leaders to convey China’s position and blow a check. The summit will be held ahead of the ‘Democracy Summit’ next month. This is the place for the US to formalize its systemic rivalry with China. Since Taiwan was also invited to the meeting, the ‘one China’ principle advocated by China may be shaken. For China, it is time for President Xi to once again raise his voice by nailing the core interests that cannot be abandoned.
② Beauty that does not cross the line, China responds
Yang Jiechi (first from right), a member of the Politburo for Foreign Affairs of China, and Jake Sullivan (first from left), U.S. national security adviser, hold a meeting in Zurich, Switzerland, on the 6th of last month. Zurich = Xinhua News
White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN on the 7th (local time) that the Biden administration does not seek to fundamentally transform the Chinese system and respects the one-China principle. Compared to President Biden’s accusation that “Xi Jinping is a dictator” in September, he has lowered the level a lot. When Sullivan met with Yang Jiechi, a member of the Communist Party’s foreign affairs bureau, last month, he tried not to provoke China, saying, “I don’t want a clash.” It was a preliminary suspension work to create conditions for the summit.
Trade volume between the two countries increased despite the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and diplomatic conflicts. Last year’s trade volume increased by 9.4% compared to 2019. The US politicians are insisting on decoupling with China (severing mutual dependence), but that is just a statement. In response, Chinese media adhere to the position that “decoupling is a fiction”.
③Xi Jinping, 22 months of ‘home away from home’ diplomacy
Xi did not go abroad again this time. Since January of last year, he stayed in Korea for 22 months and was unable to escape from ‘home-cooked’ diplomacy, which connects with the outside world through video. He is going to have his first summit with President Biden, but it is bound to be less effective than a face-to-face meeting.
However, the Global Times predicted on the 10th that “the consulate, which has been closed for more than a year, will resume operations and achieve results in the issue of visas for Chinese students.” In July of last year, the two countries closed their consulates in Houston and Chengdu alternately, leading to extreme confrontation. The U.S. used to cancel or forcibly deport Chinese students’ visas for national security reasons during the entry process.
In July, China invited Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman to Tianjin and presented a list of requests. Among them, the release of Huawei Vice Chairman Meng Wanzhou was carried out, but the removal of visa restrictions for Chinese Communist Party members and foreign students, the lifting of sanctions on Chinese officials and institutions, and the cessation of the suppression of Confucius Institutes and Chinese companies still remain obstacles to improving bilateral relations.
In his congratulatory remarks at the dinner of the US-China National Committee on U.S.-China relations, a for-profit group read by Ambassador Qin Kang to the United States the day before, Xi said, “I will put the Sino-US relations on the right track for healthy and stable development.” However, even the Chinese newspaper network that delivered the news added a clue, saying, “From a strategic point of view, it would be impossible for the Sino-US relationship to return to the way it used to be.”
Beijing= Kim Kwang-soo correspondent rollings@hankookilbo.com
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