Biden Labels Xi A 'Dictator' Hours After ‘Constructive’ Meeting

In a significant attempt to ease tensions, President Joe Biden of the United States and China's Xi Jinping met face-to-face for the first time in a year on Wednesday. Both leaders pledged to stabilize their strained relationship by highlighting modest agreements, targeting illegal fentanyl, and reestablishing military communications.

One of the key outcomes of the meeting was the agreement that "if either man had a concern, 'we should pick up the phone and call one another and we'll take the call. That's important progress,'" Biden remarked during a subsequent news conference.

During their four-hour encounter, which included meetings, a working lunch, and a stroll in a picturesque Northern California estate, Biden and Xi aimed to demonstrate that despite being global economic rivals, they aren't locked in a winner-takes-all confrontation.

Biden said that the return to "direct, open, clear, direct communications," describing the discussions with Xi as "some of the most constructive and productive" he's had. However, soon after their summit, Biden reaffirmed his previous characterization of Xi as a "dictator," underlining that Xi runs a communist country, different from the United States.

Acknowledging the need for clear understanding between them, Biden emphasized the importance of preventing competition from escalating into conflict.

This crucial meeting, held on the sidelines of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference, comes at a critical moment as the world grapples with economic fluctuations, conflicts in various regions, tensions in Taiwan, and other pressing issues.

Among the agreed-upon measures were initiatives to curb illicit fentanyl production and to reinitiate military connections, aiming to address the overdose crisis in the U.S., where many of the chemicals used in synthetic fentanyl originate from China.