President Joe Biden held a secure video call with President Xi Jinping of the People’s Republic of China Friday.
Worth noting: The call ran from 7:03 a.m. to 8:53 a.m MST, which is almost two hours long.
What Biden said: Biden “described the implications and consequences if China provides material support to Russia as it conducts brutal attacks against Ukrainian cities and civilians,” the White House announced.
- Biden also “underscored his support for a diplomatic resolution to the crisis,” per the White House.
What Xi said: Xi told Biden that the war was in no one’s interest, according to The Kyiv Independent.
- Per Reuters, Xi expressed support for peace in Ukraine.
- Xi said China and the United States must find a way to create world peace.
- “The Ukraine crisis is something that we don’t want to see,” Xi was quoted as saying, per Reuters.
Why it matters: Biden and Xi spoke amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, a major event that has reshaped geopolitics.
- “This is part of our ongoing efforts to maintain open lines of communication between the United States and the PRC,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said about the call on Thursday.
The bigger picture: The United States has been worried about China’s involvement with the war, issuing a warning to China to not get involved with the conflict, per NBC News.
- U.S. officials have been monitoring China for potentially spreading Russian misinformation about the war, too.
- “There are also reports — denied by the Kremlin — that Russia has reached out to China for aid as it faces sanctions and an invasion that faces stiff resistance by Ukrainians,” The Associated Press reports.