Pottinger: Xi Jinping believes this is China’s moment

As you know better than I, the US has a lot of weapons programs, military initiatives designed to deal with the growing Chinese challenge in the Indo-Pacific. Even so, President Biden decided last year, and Xi Jinping seems to have made the same decision As you know better than I, the US has a lot of weapons programs, military initiatives designed to deal with the growing Chinese challenge in the Indo-Pacific. Even so, President Biden decided last year, and Xi Jinping seems to have made the same decision summit that they both wanted a floor under this deteriorating, increasingly competitive relationship that that was the to me the outcome of the Bali meeting. Do you think that that's a good idea to have a floor even as we compete ever more intensely? summit that they both wanted a floor under this deteriorating, increasingly competitive relationship that that was the to me the outcome of the Bali meeting. Do you think that that's a good idea to have a floor even as we compete ever more intensely? Yeah, look, I'm strongly in favor of high level contact between President Biden and Xi Jinping. I think it's this is the single most important channel between the two countries, right? There used to be a lot of activity that was taking place at a working level that I think did not end up serving the strategic purpose that we hoped it would. But at the highest level, Yeah, look, I'm strongly in favor of high level contact between President Biden and Xi Jinping.

I think it's this is the single most important channel between the two countries, right? There used to be a lot of activity that was taking place at a working level that I think did not end up serving the strategic purpose that we hoped it would. But at the highest level, given that Xi Jinping is really the only person authorized to make decisions anymore in that society on the economy, on military matters and diplomacy, it is important for President Biden to maintain regular contact by phone and in person with with Xi. Look, the Biden administration uses the term guardrails. You use the term putting a floor under the given that Xi Jinping is really the only person authorized to make decisions anymore in that society on the economy, on military matters and diplomacy, it is important for President Biden to maintain regular contact by phone and in person with with Xi. Look, the Biden administration uses the term guardrails. You use the term putting a floor under the relationship that I think that that is that is all well and good. I think that we should we should make the effort to try to lay out a vision for what a reasonable relationship might look like.

I used to think back to the Chinese Premier Zhu Rongzi who used to say, you know, our relations with the United States are never going to be great, but they also don't relationship that I think that that is that is all well and good. I think that we should we should make the effort to try to lay out a vision for what a reasonable relationship might look like. I used to think back to the Chinese Premier Zhu Rongzi who used to say, you know, our relations with the United States are never going to be great, but they also don't need to be horrendous. That's not a bad place to aim for. But as we do it, we should not be overly wishful in our thinking that Beijing is going to reciprocate because so far the indicators are that Beijing is not willing to reciprocate. If you look at Xi Jinping's the compendium of what he's been talking about for 10 years, he believes that China has now need to be horrendous. That's not a bad place to aim for.

But as we do it, we should not be overly wishful in our thinking that Beijing is going to reciprocate because so far the indicators are that Beijing is not willing to reciprocate. If you look at Xi Jinping's the compendium of what he's been talking about for 10 years, he believes that China has now reached what he calls an opportunity unseen in a century. He talks about this a lot, this idea that and when you read his speeches and you also read some of the internal facing senior level Communist Party textbooks, the textbooks that general officers in the PLA read, they talk about the decline of the United States and chaos in Europe as though they are prerequisites reached what he calls an opportunity unseen in a century. He talks about this a lot, this idea that and when you read his speeches and you also read some of the internal facing senior level Communist Party textbooks, the textbooks that general officers in the PLA read, they talk about the decline of the United States and chaos in Europe as though they are prerequisites for China taking advantage of this opportunity unseen in a century. So we just have to be very clear eyed about how Xi is describing this moment. He's not describing this as a moment of how do we find guardrails, how do we avoid an accidental war, how do we put a floor under things. That's not how he's talking when he's talking to his party leadership.

He's saying we for China taking advantage of this opportunity unseen in a century. So we just have to be very clear eyed about how Xi is describing this moment. He's not describing this as a moment of how do we find guardrails, how do we avoid an accidental war, how do we put a floor under things. That's not how he's talking when he's talking to his party leadership. He's saying we have a moment of opportunity. It's finite. We need to move and Europe is already in chaos and in his view the United States is in decline and he views those as favorable conditions for China achieving a community of common destiny for mankind as he puts it.

And as you unpack what he means by that phrase, it's not a pretty vision. This is a vision for remaking global governance to make it a safer authoritarianism. have a moment of opportunity. It's finite. We need to move and Europe is already in chaos and in his view the United States is in decline and he views those as favorable conditions for China achieving a community of common destiny for mankind as he puts it. And as you unpack what he means by that phrase, it's not a pretty vision. This is a vision for remaking global governance to make it a safer authoritarianism.