US President Joe Biden met China’s top diplomat on Friday in a conversation that was viewed as the precursor to a potential sit-down with Chinese leader Xi Jinping next month.
The White House meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was the latest in a series of high-level contacts between the two countries as they explore the possibility of stabilising an increasingly tense relationship at a time of conflict in Ukraine and Israel.
The White House said Mr Biden “emphasised that both the United States and China need to manage competition in the relationship responsibly and maintain open lines of communication” and he “underscored that the United States and China must work together to address global challenges”.
Mr Biden had been widely expected to talk to Mr Wang, a reciprocal action after Mr Xi met Secretary of State Antony Blinken in June.
Beijing has yet to confirm if Mr Xi will travel to San Francisco for the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit next month, but Mr Biden has said a meeting between the two leaders on the sidelines was possible.
The White House said the US and China had agreed to "work toward" a meeting between the two leaders, but would not elaborate if it would take place in San Francisco.
Mr Wang is in the midst of a three-day visit to Washington, where he has been meeting top US officials. He sat down with Mr Blinken for the second time during his trip on Friday. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also met Mr Wang.
On Thursday, after their initial meeting, the Chinese delegation said “the two sides had an in-depth exchange of views on China-US relations and issues of common concern in a constructive atmosphere”.
In its readout, the US State Department said the two men addressed “areas of difference” and “areas of co-operation”, while Mr Blinken “reiterated that the United States will continue to stand up for our interests and values and those of our allies and partners”.
A Biden administration official on Friday said the US had expressed deep concern over the situation in the Middle East and pressed China to take a more constructive approach.
US officials believe the Chinese have considerable leverage with Iran, which is a major backer of Hamas.
“China should use whatever ability it has as an influential power to urge calm” in the Middle East, said State Department spokesman Matthew Miller earlier this week.
“We know China has relationships with a number of countries in the region, and we would urge them to use those relationships, the lines of communication they have, to urge calm and stability.”
Mr Wang has come to Washington at a time when tension between the two countries remains high, including over US export controls on advanced technology and China's more assertive actions in the East and South China seas.
On Thursday, the US military released a video of a Chinese fighter jet flying within 3 metres of an American B-52 bomber over the South China Sea, nearly causing an accident.
The Biden administration official said they had expressed hope for better military-to-military relations, and that Mr Blinken had said the US wanted to address the issue of detained Americans in China.
The Chinese President last came to the US in 2017, when former president Donald Trump hosted him at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
Mr Biden, who took office in 2021, has yet to host Mr Xi on US soil.
The two men last met in Bali, Indonesia, in November 2022, on the sidelines of the G20 meeting of leading rich and developing nations.
The US-China relationship began to sour in 2018 when the Trump administration slapped hefty tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods. It deteriorated further over a range of issues, including rights abuses, the South China Sea, Taiwan, technology and the Covid-19 pandemic.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
Your rights as an employee
The government has taken an increasingly tough line against companies that fail to pay employees on time. Three years ago, the Cabinet passed a decree allowing the government to halt the granting of work permits to companies with wage backlogs.
The new measures passed by the Cabinet in 2016 were an update to the Wage Protection System, which is in place to track whether a company pays its employees on time or not.
If wages are 10 days late, the new measures kick in and the company is alerted it is in breach of labour rules. If wages remain unpaid for a total of 16 days, the authorities can cancel work permits, effectively shutting off operations. Fines of up to Dh5,000 per unpaid employee follow after 60 days.
Despite those measures, late payments remain an issue, particularly in the construction sector. Smaller contractors, such as electrical, plumbing and fit-out businesses, often blame the bigger companies that hire them for wages being late.
The authorities have urged employees to report their companies at the labour ministry or Tawafuq service centres — there are 15 in Abu Dhabi.
U19 WORLD CUP, WEST INDIES
UAE group fixtures (all in St Kitts)
- Saturday 15 January: UAE beat Canada by 49 runs
- Thursday 20 January: v England
- Saturday 22 January: v Bangladesh
UAE squad:
Alishan Sharafu (captain), Shival Bawa, Jash Giyanani, Sailles
Jaishankar, Nilansh Keswani, Aayan Khan, Punya Mehra, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly,
Dhruv Parashar, Vinayak Raghavan, Soorya Sathish, Aryansh Sharma, Adithya
Shetty, Kai Smith
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Brief scoreline:
Wolves 3
Neves 28', Doherty 37', Jota 45' 2
Arsenal 1
Papastathopoulos 80'
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Terminator: Dark Fate
Director: Tim Miller
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Mackenzie Davis
Rating: 3/5
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Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Drivers’ championship standings after Singapore:
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes - 263
2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari - 235
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes - 212
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull - 162
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari - 138
6. Sergio Perez, Force India - 68
