Xi Jinping and Joe Biden are trying to organize their differences

" My old friend.When the Chinese president uses such a courteous expression with regard to his American counterpart, we grasp an intention, more than attention.In the preamble - intended for cameras - of their long exchange, Monday November 15 in Washington, Tuesday 16 in Beijing, Xi Jinping and Joe Biden wanted, failing to get closer, display their pragmatism and their weighting.

Organize the rules of competition between their countries and avoid an open confrontation that would not benefit anyone: it was the goal of this video interview of almost three and a half hours.On both sides, in recent weeks, clear signals had been sent to this effect, despite the access of punctual fever on Taiwan.But the formal message should not hide deep differences on the bottom, tension subjects and exacerbated competition fields.

Two rooms were facing each other, with very different sets.In Washington, Joe Biden had taken place in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, at the end of a table where his closest collaborators had also settled for foreign policy, notably the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, and theNational Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan.

Xi Jinping, for his part, spoke in a huge piece of the People's Palace, in Beijing, in front of a cinema screen where his counterpart appeared.He was surrounded by three diplomats and by Liu He, the Deputy Prime Minister responsible for economic issues.According to a senior White House official, the video conversation was much more dynamic than a simple phone call.The two leaders did not stick to the planned script, going back and forth, arrested themselves by citing each other.

Gigantic ships

Requesting at the outset "mutual respect" between the two major powers, the Chinese leader wished more "communication and cooperation".He compared the two countries to gigantic ships, in the open sea, shattering the waves and trying to keep their course and their speed.Xi Jinping launched a warning about Taiwan's instrumentalization to contain China's ambitions: "Whoever plays with fire will be burned."For Xi Jinping," China is patient and in good faith and will do all its efforts to reach a peaceful reunification, but, if Taiwanese separatists provoke and cross the red line, we will be forced to take measures decisively ".Joe Biden repeated the essential points of American policy vis-à-vis China: no official recognition of Taiwan;No desire for inner destabilization against the Chinese regime.

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