Reading the Xi leaves: A Biden meeting good for everyone

A meeting of the two leaders during the upcoming Apec summit would indicate that the rivalry between the two superpowers is being checked

James Chin

Published Tue, Oct 31, 2023 · 05:00 AM

Apec Summit

WILL Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, attend the Apec summit in San Francisco from Nov 11 to 17 in person?

Current indications are he will likely attend, though American officials say nothing is yet definite, including his meeting US President Joe Biden. And there is always the possibility of a Xi no-show at the last minute.

If Xi skips the meeting as he did the G20 summit in September and nothing substantial comes out of Apec, Asean will probably pivot even more to the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).