Biden will conduct an online meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday. Most outlets—left, right, and center—expect the topic of Taiwan to dominate the discussion.
Summary
President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet virtually Monday night in a bilateral meeting expected to involve a number of issues causing friction between the United States and China.
- Xi is expected to bring up the thorny issue of Taiwan, and will urge the Americans to “step back” while China works towards “national reunification.”
- The meeting comes after Biden publicly pledged to defend Taiwan, which China considers a breakaway province, from a military attack by Beijing.
- “Public warmth” between the two figures has been cultivated over the years when both served as vice presidents for their respective governments.
- DC insiders also expect progress to be made between the two nations over trade issues of concern to the American business community, particularly after Biden has maintained several aggressive trade and tariff policies from the Trump administration.
- CNN assigned considerable urgency to the talk with Xi and inexplicably used the bipartisan infrastructure legislation, to be signed into law a few hours before the meeting, as an example of Biden’s foreign policy.
- BBC News talked to two of their reporters, one in Washington and the other in China, to provide local perspective on what end goals each side could or should be seeking in today’s talk.
- The Guardian expanded better than most outlets on the threat China poses, noting the military buildup in the Pacific and repeated allegations of cyber-attacks based out of China.
- Fox News highlighted criticism of China by NBA player Enes Kanter in which he urged Biden to “prioritize human rights” and press Xi on human rights abuses in Hong Kong, Xinjiang, and Tibet.
- While not referencing the meeting between Biden and Xi, Newsmax reported on a radio conversation in which “Far East expert” Gordon Chang blasted China for importing fentanyl into the United States through Mexico.
- The Wall Street Journal’s coverage focused on American officials’ attempts to downplay the significance and weight of the meeting, quoting a senior administration official that they aren’t “trying to change China through bilateral engagement.”
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© Dallas Gerber, 2021
