Biden Meets Xi Jinping For First Talks Amidst US-China Tensions; US President Labels Xi a 'Dictator' Hours Later

US President Joe Biden, in the wake of a summit with Xi Jinping on Wednesday, said that he still considers the Chinese president as a "dictator."

Earlier this year, his use of this term had elicited strong reactions from Beijing.

During a news conference, when a reporter inquired whether he would continue to employ the term to describe Xi, Biden stated, "Well look he is, I mean he's a dictator in the sense that he's a guy who's running a country, a Communist country, that's based on a form of government totally different than ours".

Biden on Wednesday held a summit with Jinping in Woodside, California. 

The two leaders held a candid and constructive discussion on a range of bilateral and global issues including areas of potential cooperation and exchanged views on areas of difference, according to a US readout of the meeting.

President Biden emphasised that the United States and China are in competition, noting that the US would continue to invest in the sources of American strength at home and align with allies and partners around the world. 

He stressed that the United States would always stand up for its interests, its values, and its allies and partners. 

He reiterated that the world expects the United States and China to manage competition responsibly to prevent it from veering into conflict, confrontation, or a new Cold War, according to the readout.

The two governments said Biden and Xi agreed to resume military contacts that China severed after then-House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022.

Biden and Xi agreed China would stem the export of items related to the production of the opioid fentanyl, a leading cause of drug overdoses in the United States.

On Taiwan, the democratic island that China claims as its territory, Biden said that the US was in the favour of status-quo and asked Xi to respect the electoral process in the island nation.

Xi responded that at some point China would have to go for 'reunification'. He also urged the United States to stop sending weapons to Taiwan and support China’s peaceful “reunification” with Taiwan, Chinese state media said.