China's Xi wishes Biden speedy recovery from covid infection

CHINA'S Xi Jinping wished US President Joe Biden a speedy recovery from Covid-19, as the 2 leaders prepare to speak over the phone to ease tensions between the 2 largest economies.

The Chinese president sent the goodwill message to Biden, 79, on Friday (Jul 22), state broadcaster China Central Television said. Biden tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday, contracting the virus whose control and ultimate defeat he had made a centrepiece of his campaign for the White House. Biden has mild symptoms and is taking Pfizer's Paxlovid treatment, White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain said in a memo seen by Bloomberg.

A day earlier, Biden had said he planned to talk with Xi "within the next 10 days." Relations between the US and China - already tense over trade tariffs, human rights issues and Russia's invasion of Ukraine - have been strained further by reports this week that US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will visit Taiwan next month. Beijing considers the democratically ruled island its territory and opposes such visits as a violation of diplomatic agreements.

The conversation between Biden and Xi would cover a range of bilateral, regional and global issues, a White House official earlier said. The official asked not to be identified because the call hadn't been scheduled. It was unclear how Biden's infection would affect the conversation, which would always have been conducted virtually.

Xi hasn't met Biden in person since the US leader took office, as China's strict Covid curbs have prevented him from leaving his country since January 2020. That zero-tolerance approach to Covid-19 stands in contrast to the US, which has chosen to live with the virus, opening borders and dropping mask mandates. BLOOMBERG