US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping have agreed to resume military communications at a summit designed to stabilise relations after several years of rising concern about a possible conflict over Taiwan, reports the Financial Times. At a press conference following his meeting with Xi outside San Francisco on Wednesday, Biden said the countries had reached a series of agreements, including a commitment from China to reopen military communication channels that it had shut after then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022.
“We’re back to direct, open, clear . . . communication,” said Biden, adding that it marked “important progress” in US-China relations, which had descended to their lowest point since the countries established ties in 1979.
The two sides also agreed to set up a counter-narcotics working group. Beijing has said it will curb the export of chemicals used to make fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that has sparked a deadly drug epidemic in the US.
