US and China on the Path to Becoming Military Rivals

One of the most highly anticipated diplomatic events of the year took place this week in a mansion outside San Francisco. President Biden and Xi Jinping, China’s top leader, met to repair their countries’ relations, which had sunk to one of their lowest points in decades.

Edward Wong, a diplomatic correspondent for The New York Times, discusses the effort to bring the relationship back from the brink.

Guest: Edward Wong, a diplomatic correspondent for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• Both American and Chinese accounts of the meeting indicated scant progress on the issues that have pushed the two nations to the edge of conflict.
• China’s depiction of Xi Jinping’s U.S. visit reflected his sometimes-contradictory priorities: to project both strength and a willingness to engage with Washington.

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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