Biden and China's Xi met Monday in a virtual summit. Here's where the relationship stands.

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden raised human rights concerns during a Monday evening virtual summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping and pushed for "common-sense guard rails" so fierce competition between the two world powers does not lead to conflict.

The meeting, which lasted about three and a half hours, came at a near nadir in a relationship that most foreign policy analysts expect will define the 21st century after years of tense relations. Both sides articulated they see basic communication as key to avoiding a major crisis.

Biden, seated next to two television screens in the White House's Roosevelt Room, kicked off the summit a little before 8 p.m. ET, telling Xi it's the responsibility of both leaders "to ensure that the competition between our countries does not veer into conflict, whether intended or unintended."

“It seems to me we need to establish a common-sense guardrail, to be clear and honest where we disagree and work together where our interests intersect, especially on vital global issues like climate change," Biden said in his introductory remarks. "We have a responsibility for the world as well as for our people."

Through an interpreter, Xi told Biden that "although it's not as good as a face-to-face meeting," he was "very happy to see my old friend."

“Humanity lives in a global village, and we face multiple challenges together,” Xi said. “China and the U.S. need to increase communication and cooperation.”

The two leaders had previously only communicated by phone since Biden became president. Rather than seeking a "breakthrough," Biden went into the meeting hoping to develop ways to manage competition with China, according to a senior administration official who discussed the summit on the condition of anonymity.

Biden raised concerns about China's practices in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong, "as well as human rights more broadly," the White House said in a statement after the meeting. The president stressed the need to protect American workers and industries from China's "unfair trade and economic practices."

Biden and Xi did not discuss the Beijing Winter Olympics set for February, according to the administration official, who described the meeting as respectful. Some have called for boycotting the games because of China’s human rights record.

Regarding Taiwan, Biden underscored the U.S. commitment to the "one China" policy and opposition to unilateral efforts to change the status quo or undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

Biden talked about the importance of a "free and open Indo-Pacific" and reiterated the importance of "freedom of navigation and safe overflight to the region’s prosperity," the White House said. Biden and Xi also exchanged views on "regional challenges," including North Korea, Afghanistan and Iran

The two leaders also discussed the climate crisis and efforts to bring an end to the COVID-19 pandemic through vaccinations. Biden this month called out Xi's decision to sit out of the United Nations' COP26 climate summit in Scotland, arguing it undermined China's standing in the world.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday that Biden entered the meeting "from a position of strength" after shoring up key US alliances and securing a major bipartisan infrastructure package at home.

Where the US-China relationship stands

U.S.-China relations steadily worsened over the past few years with former President Donald Trump turning the country into a political foil during his campaign for president. He later imposed steep tariffs against China over trade practices and lambasted the country's government and citizens during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chinese leaders have also taken a more stridently nationalist tone domestically and abroad in recent years. The government is currently leading a crackdown on major tech companies and increasing censorship of any vaguely critical voices.

Xi has frequently indicated his desire to take over Taiwan, an independent nation that Beijing sees as a renegade province, within his lifetime. The Chinese government has also taken major steps to stifle democracy in Hong Kong, a quasi-independent city-state under its control.

The increased repression comes as China increases its economic and military might on the global stage, worrying the U.S. and Western allies who see a challenge to the rules-based international order crafted in Washington over the last century.

While the White House is candid about the many areas of disagreement it has with China's behavior domestically and abroad, Psaki said Monday that Biden "will also look for areas where we can work together," especially on issues like climate change.

Monday's call was the third conversation between the two leaders; Biden and Xi have already had two phone calls this year where they discussed how to maintain stability between the two countries while acknowledging the oppositional relationship.

“This is competition. It does not have to be conflict,” Biden said of the U.S.-China relationship in a speech at the U.N. climate change summit.

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What was on the agenda for the Biden-Xi call?

The meeting served as a way for the two powers to “responsibly manage competition” while still allowing Biden to express dissatisfaction in areas of the relationship, the State Department said in a statement beforehand.

"The meeting in our view is an opportunity to set the terms of the competition with China in a way that reflects our interests and values, insist that the (China) played by the rules of the road," Psaki said before the summit. "The president will certainly express his view that China should be playing by the rules that the rest of the global community expects."

On Saturday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with China’s foreign minister as a prelude to the summit between Biden and Xi. The State Department said Blinken noted that the meeting presents an opportunity for the two leaders to discuss how to responsibly manage competition while working together in areas where interests align.

While Biden famously prefers to meet foreign leaders in person, Xi has not left China since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, making a meeting between the two leaders on neutral ground an unlikely prospect.

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A long history of talks between Xi and Biden

Biden and Xi have known each other for years, going back to when Biden served as vice president under then-President Barack Obama while Xi was China’s vice president. Biden has boasted that he has spent more time with Xi than any other world leader.

Xi recently consolidated further power at a November meeting of the Chinese Communist Party, meaning Biden's direct familiarity with the autocrat is even more impactful in steering the future of the relationship.

Biden traveled to China in 2011 and met with Xi over the course of three days. A year later, Xi met with Biden and Obama at the White House and had dinner with Biden at the vice president’s residence the Naval Observatory in Washington.

Biden met again with Xi in China in 2013 and again in 2015 when Xi came to Washington on a state visit as the Chinese president.

Familiarity does not equal friendship, however, as Biden and senior aides often repeat publicly. Biden's long relationship with Xi enables him "to be direct, to not hold back" in conversations, Psaki said Monday.

"The president feels he is able to raise candid discussions with President Xi," she continued, adding the Biden feels Xi is someone "with whom he can raise directly areas where we have concerns, whether its security issues, whether its economic issues, human rights."

Michael Collins and Matthew Brown cover the White House. Follow Collins on Twitter @mcollinsNEWS and Brown @mrbrownsir.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden and Xi met in a virtual summit amid tense US-China relations