Chinese President Xi Jinping initially tried to avoid meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Joe Biden, and other top international leaders by postponing his scheduled participation at the two-day G20 summit in Delhi beginning September 9. He has now requested that his Ministry of Security come up with an excuse for him to miss the November international meeting.
Premier Li Qiang will attend the G20, according to the Chinese foreign ministry, but Xi may not. Li previously served as the Communist Party leader for the city of Shanghai, although he has virtually little background in foreign affairs.
Premier Li Qiang “will elaborate on China’s views and propositions on G20 cooperation, promote the G20 to strengthen solidarity and cooperation and work together to address global economic and development challenges,” according to a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Mao Ning.
China is prepared to collaborate with all parties “to jointly promote the success of the G20” meeting and “make positive contributions to promoting the stable recovery of the world economy and promoting sustainable development,” Mao stated.
However, observers claim that Premier Li won’t likely take any independent actions and would instead be ordered by Xi from Beijing. He will attempt, like the majority of Chinese leaders, to keep his worldwide presence low because Xi might not like it.
China’s excuse to skip G20
On another level, the Asia Pacific Leaders’ meeting in San Francisco in November has been mentioned as a potential absence for Xi by the Chinese Ministry of Security.
China’s Ministry of Security criticised Washington’s “two-faced” China policy in a statement. “The US must demonstrate genuine sincerity if the move from Bali to San Francisco is to be realised,” it stated. The most recent G20 summit was held in Bali, and the next summit of Asia Pacific leaders will be held in San Francisco.
As it “downplayed China’s economy” and permitted arms sales and military aid to Taiwan, the US, according to the ministry, has taken many measures to destabilise China. China opposes American plans to arm the island because it considers Taiwan to be a part of its territory.
China is laying the groundwork for Xi Jinping to miss the San Francisco summit, which will be attended by several world leaders, including President Biden, by whining about the US.
Biden expressed his disappointment at Xi’s decision to skip the meeting, in which the Chinese president is scheduled to discuss important global issues. He still has hope that Xi will show up to the San Francisco meeting, though. He said, “I’m disappointed, but I’m going to see him.
Why is Xi declining the chance to speak with foreign leaders, reversing his strategy of positioning himself as a world leader and peacemaker on several international forums?
The Chinese President is undoubtedly attempting to avoid embarrassing inquiries regarding the Chinese economy, which is of great concern to financial markets throughout the globe. Due to the economic downturn that continued long after the Covid epidemic phase ended and the gloomy outlook for 2024, China’s influence on the world stage has drastically decreased.
The US is putting new barriers in the path of Chinese enterprises virtually every month, and as a result, foreign direct investments have dropped to their lowest level in 25 years. This has caused the Communist Party, which is in power in China, to review the country’s economic strategy. Due to the lowest level of employment for urban youth in decades, the party is also concerned about internal strife. Simply put, Xi is currently unable to defend his leadership on a global scale.
Xi feels isolated
He may also be reluctant to attend owing to the absence of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who declined to attend due to his role in the conflict in Ukraine. In most recent international events, Xi and Putin have collaborated and coordinated their reactions to global challenges. Putin’s absence leaves Xi open to being trapped by Western nations on a variety of problems, such as the situation in Ukraine and Taiwan.
Aside from Saudi Arabia, Argentina, and Turkey, China has few allies in the G20. If China is under pressure from the US in a global arena, even these nations are unlikely to support it. The majority of China’s close allies are developing nations that are not G20 members but require Chinese funding for infrastructure projects and other purposes.
The Philippines and Australia recently participated in a naval exercise in the South China Sea, posing a severe military threat to China. China, which sees the majority of the sea area as its own territory, was directly challenged by the exercise, which was carried out with US help. The Chinese navy has frequently driven Philippine naval ships out of the region.
Attending the G20 would be equivalent to affirming India’s position as a global leader. The African Union, which has 51 members, has been invited to join the G20 as part of a number of diplomatic attempts by the Narendra Modi administration. The expansion of India’s economy, its status as the world’s most populous nation, and the successful landing of Chandrayan on the moon’s surface have all contributed to the country’s growing prominence.
Xi would not want to support India’s leadership role while China continues to troubleshoot India’s boundaries and obstruct negotiations to resolve the border dispute. Journalists from the two nations were recently expelled from one another.
Biden supports India
As a counterbalance to China’s global dominance, the US has been trying to push India to assume additional leadership responsibilities. Xi is not in the mood to support this state of affairs while he is in New Delhi.
In order to strengthen India’s position ahead of the G20 summit on September 9, President Biden will be in New Delhi for bilateral talks with Prime Minister Modi on September 7. Because the Chinese foreign ministry had just stated that Xi would not be visiting New Delhi, the announcement’s timing is crucial.
In many sectoral meetings related to the G20, including those on tourism and climate change, China has vetoed a number of Indian ideas. Beijing wants to prevent a common communique from being issued at the conclusion of the summit in order to prevent India from declaring success.
By arriving in New Delhi earlier than expected, Biden is attempting to support India and contribute to the G20’s passable success. However, because representatives from China and Russia would fight tooth and nail against it, it seems unlikely that the US and other Western nations will force through a resolution on Ukraine.
