As Washington works to mend relations with Beijing, US President Joe Biden voiced disappointment on Sunday that Chinese leader Xi Jinping would not attend the G20 summit in India this week.
When asked about reports that Xi will not attend the meeting in New Delhi, Biden responded, “I am disappointed, but I am going to get to see him,” to reporters without going into further detail.
Trade conflicts, Taiwan’s future, the significant Chinese presence in the South China Sea, and other issues plague bilateral relations between the United States and China.
Despite ongoing tension, the United States has been trying to reestablish a more productive working relationship and has recently dispatched a number of top officials to China.
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Premier Li Qiang would represent Xi at the G20, a senior EU official announced on Thursday.
Xi and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke in person for the first time in a long time during the BRICS conference in South Africa last month, but tensions between the two Asian superpowers are still high.
Since a Himalayan border clash in 2020 that claimed the lives of 20 Indian soldiers and at least four Chinese troops, relations between the two most populous nations in the world have been severely strained.