China seeks to be friends with US, won't fight 'hot war': Xi Jinping

US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday he had not changed his view that Chinese President Xi Jinping was effectively a dictator, a comment likely to land with a thud in Beijing after the two leaders held straightforward summit talks.

Biden held a solo news conference after four hours of talks with Xi on the outskirts of San Francisco. At the end of the news conference, he was asked whether he still held the view that Xi was a dictator, something he said in June.
 

“Look, he is. He’s a dictator in the sense that he’s a guy who runs a country that is a communist country that’s based on a form of government totally different than ours,” Biden said. In response, China’s foreign ministry said it “strongly opposes” the remarks, without mentioning Biden by name.
 

Meanwhile, China President Xi Jinping said China wants to be friends with the US and said his nation won’t fight a war with anyone, one of his clearest remarks yet proclaiming a desire for peaceful ties between the world’s two largest economies. In a speech to business executives in San Francisco shortly after meeting US President Joe Biden on Wednesday, Xi said China “never bets against the United States” and “has no intention to challenge the United States or to unseat it.”  “Whatever stage of development it may reach, China will never pursue hegemony or expansion, and will never impose its will on others,” Xi said. “China does not seek spheres of influence and will not fight a cold war or a hot war with anyone.”
 

Biden highlighted the restoration of direct military-to-military contacts, saying they would prevent miscalculations between the two countries and also indicted he had the ability to speak to Xi directly. “That’s how accidents happen, misunderstandings, so we’re back to direct, open, clear, direct communications,” Biden said. The deal from China on combating fentanyl was characterised by senior US officials as the most important agreement from the summit. The officials said Biden told Xi that fentanyl posed one of the worst drug problems the US had faced. The officials said they would watch closely to see if China follows through on the pledge.
 

Biden said the agreement helps “significantly reduce the flow of precursor chemicals and pill presses from China to the Western Hemisphere.” “It’s going to save lives and I appreciate President Xi’s commitment on this issue,” he said.  The two leaders also agreed to get experts together to discuss the risks of artificial intelligence. A US official described an exchange over Taiwan, the democratic island that China claims as its territory. China's preference is for peaceful reunification with the Chinese-claimed island of Taiwan, Xi told Biden, the US official said, but Xi went on to talk about conditions in which force could be used. 

Xi indicates China will once again send pandas to US zoos

President Xi Jinping indicated that China will renew its “Panda Diplomacy” with the US by once again sending the bears to American zoos, signaling his intent to stabilise relations between the world’s two largest economies.

“Pandas have long been envoys of friendship between the Chinese and American peoples,” Xi said during a dinner with business executives on the sidelines of the APEC summit in San Francisco on Wednesday. “We are ready to continue our cooperation with the United States on panda conservation, and do our best to meet the wishes of the Californians so as to deepen friendly ties between our peoples.”

Apple’s Cook, BlackRock’s Fink among CEO guests at Xi dinner
 

US business titans including Apple’s Tim Cook and BlackRock’s Larry Fink are set to attend a dinner with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday, as he tries to woo foreign capital to the world’s second-largest economy. Blackstone Inc. Chief Executive Officer Steve Schwarzman and Visa CEO Ryan McInerney will also join them at the soiree in 

San Francisco, according to people briefed on the matter.

Key Takeaways
 

• US President Joe Biden emphasised on West Asia, calling for peace and stability
• Biden sought China's help to de-escalate tensions with Iran
• China President Xi Jinping said he support Tesla's development in the country 
• Xi urged the US to stop sending weapons to Taiwan
• Xi said it’s unfair that there are negative views about the Chinese communist party within the US