Photo: AFP/Saul Loeb
Eurasia
07/10/2023 18:00
The White House had begun making plans for a meeting on the sidelines of the summit in a bid to stabilise relations, The Washington Post reported, quoting one official as saying it "it's pretty firm".
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected to visit Washington at some point ahead of the APEC summit.
Beijing however has not confirmed whether Xi will attend the summit or meet with his US counterpart. The White House has also declined to elaborate on a potential meeting with Xi.
Donald Trump and Xi Jinping may hold their first face-to-face since Trump’s return to office, with the APEC summit in South Korea the most likely stage. Trump has linked the meeting to a breakthrough on trade, while Xi has extended an invitation to Beijing, offering both sides a chance to ease mounting strains.
A bipartisan U.S. House delegation led by Rep. Adam Smith will visit China later this month, the first such trip since 2019. Beijing confirmed the plan on Wednesday, with Smith stressing the importance of reviving dialogue between the two powers.
China’s Defense Ministry announced that China, Russia, and Mongolia have held their first-ever joint border defense drills, dubbed Border Defence Cooperation 2025.