U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping agreed on Wednesday to resume military-to-military communications and work to curb fentanyl production, two major outcomes from their first face-to-face talks in a year.
Biden and Xi met for about four hours on the outskirts of San Francisco, covered issues that have strained U.S.-Chinese relations, and agreed to commit to closer communication.
Biden and Xi agreed China would stem the export of items related to the production of the opioid fentanyl, a leading cause of drug overdoses in the United States. “It’s going to save lives,” Biden said, adding he appreciated Xi’s “commitment” on the issue.
“We’re resuming military to military contact, direct contacts. As a lot of you fresh know, follow this. That’s been cut off and it’s been way worse,” Biden said.
“We’re going to get our experts together to discuss risk and safety issues associated with artificial intelligence. As many of you travel with me around the world almost everywhere I go, every major leader wants to talk about the impact of artificial intelligence,” he added.
The two governments said Biden and Xi agreed to resume military contacts that China severed after then-House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022.
