Facing stalemate in ties, Biden and Xi discuss avoiding conflict in call

U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke for 90 minutes on Thursday, in their first talks in seven months, discussing the need to ensure that competition between the world’s two largest economies does not veer into conflict.

The U.S. side said the “proof will be in the pudding” as to whether the stalemate can be broken with ties between the superpowers languishing at their lowest point in decades.

In a statement, the White House said Biden and Xi had “a broad, strategic discussion,” including areas where interests and values converge and diverge. The conversation focused on economic issues, climate change and COIVD-19, a senior U.S. official told reporters.

“President Biden underscored the United States’ enduring interest in peace, stability, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific and the world and the two leaders discussed the responsibility of both nations to ensure competition does not veer into conflict,” the White House added.

Occasional high-level meetings since Xi and Biden’s first call in February have yielded scant progress on issues ranging from human rights to transparency over the origins of COVID-19.

In the months since, the two sides have lashed out at each other almost constantly, often with vitriolic public attacks, sanctions on officials and criticism over not upholding international obligations.
- WASHINGTON, Sept 9 (Reuters)