First Call With Xi Jinping Went on for ‘2 Straight Hrs’: Joe Biden
The two leaders also discussed the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and weapons proliferation.
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US President Joe Biden on Thursday, 11 February, said that his first phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping since taking office lasted two hours, reported news agency AFP.
"Last night, I was on the phone for two straight hours with Xi Jinping," Biden was quoted as saying by AFP.
Reportedly, Biden spoke to Jinping on issues such as human rights, trade and regional muscle-flexing during the call, which aimed at setting the tone for the US-China relationship.
Later, Biden also warned that if the United States doesn't "get moving" on its China policy, "they're going to eat our lunch."
Earlier, the White House said the president during the call "underscored his fundamental concerns about Beijing's coercive and unfair economic practices, crackdown in Hong Kong, human rights abuses in Xinjiang, and increasingly assertive actions in the region, including toward Taiwan," reported AFP.
The White House further said that the two leaders also discussed the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and weapons proliferation.
(With inputs from AFP)
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