The Bali summit meeting yesterday between the Chinese leader Xi Jinping and the US president Joe Biden seemed to bring a slight modulation of tone in the frayed relations between the two powers. Nonetheless, the geopolitical reality remains unchanged. Beijing wants the US out of its backyard, while Washington will continue to strive with allies to contain China’s expansion.
Tone, however, does matter. It was the first face-to-face encounter since Mr Biden’s election. A briefly smiling Mr Xi said he looked forward to working with Mr Biden towards creating a “healthy and stable” bilateral relationship. Mr Biden said after the meeting that he did not want competition to turn into conflict. “There need not be a new Cold War,” he said, saying that
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