UNFAIR ECONOMIC PRACTICES A WORRY: BIDEN IN 1ST CALL WITH XI

BIDEN EXPRESSES CONCERN ON CHINA’S CLAMPDOWN ON FREEDOM IN HONG KONG CHINA-US CONFRONTATION A DISASTER FOR BOTH COUNTRIES, XI TELLS BIDEN

J“I WILL WORK WITH CHINA WHEN IT BENEFITS THE AMERICAN PEOPLE... WE NEED TO MEET THE GROWING CHALLENGES POSED BY CHINA TO KEEP PEACE” JOE BIDEN PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES

"YOU HAVE SAID THAT AMERICA CAN BE DEFINED IN ONE WORD: POSSIBILITIES. WE HOPE THE POSSIBILITIES WILL NOW POINT TOWARDS AN IMPROVEMENT OF CHINA-US RELATIONS" XI JINPING PRESIDENT, CHINA

oe Biden, in his first conversation as president with the Chinese leader Xi Jinping, spoke of his concern about China’s “coercive and unfair economic practices” as well as human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region, according to a White House account of their telephone call.

Biden also expressed misgivings about the country’s growing restrictions on political freedoms in Hong Kong and “increasingly assertive actions in the region, including toward Taiwan,” in the call, which took place Thursday morning Beijing time.

Biden, who wished Xi a happy Lunar New Year, was “committed to pursuing practical, resultsoriented engagements when it advances the interests of the American people and those of our allies,” the White House said.

The two presidents, according to the readout of the call, “exchanged views on countering the Covid-19 pandemic, and the shared challenges of global health security, climate change, and preventing weapons proliferation.”

“It is notable that Taiwan was specifically mentioned as one of President Biden’s top three concerns in the phone call,” said Natasha Kassam, a former

Australian diplomat who is now a research fellow at Australia’s Lowy Institute research group.

China’s official state news agency Xinhua, meanwhile, cited Xi as saying China and the US should re-establish mechanisms for dialogue so that there would be an accurate understanding of each other’s policy intentions and to avoid misunderstanding and miscalculation. Confrontation between China and the United States would be a disaster and the two sides should re-establish the means to avoid misjudgments, Xi told Biden.

Xi reiterated during the call that cooperation was the only choice and that the two countries need to properly manage disputes in a constructive manner, according to an account of the conversation reported by Chinese state television.

He also said Beijing and Washington should re-establish various mechanisms for dialogue in order to understand each others' intentions and avoid misunderstandings, the report said.

Xi also told Biden that he hopes the United States will cautiously handle matters related to Taiwan, Hong Kong and Xinjiang that deal with matters of China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, according to an account of the discussions reported by Chinese state television on Thursday.