The Biden-Xi meeting at the G20 seems to have been relatively productive, and has at least improved the lines of communication between the two superpowers. The Chinese readout has them declaring that the relationship is ‘not what the international community expects from us’.

The first in-person meeting between Biden and Xi since Biden became president does seem to have moved US-China relations on from the depths they fell to after Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. In a sign of the relative détente, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to visit China in the New Year. But the aggressive Chinese language about the status of the island is a reminder of how problematic this factor remains to the relationship.

Biden, in his press conference, stressed that ‘I absolutely believe their need not be a new cold war’. But when you look at the US talk of how Washington and Beijing must ensure that competition does not veer into conflict, it does feel like a new era of great power competition – compounded by ideological differences – is under way.

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