Xi Jin Ping’s political will
JI-Beijing. While U.S. President Joe Biden has repeatedly expressed his willingness to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, there has been no definitive response from Beijing. On Sep. 4, however, China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) published an article laying out the conditions for a Biden-Xi meeting.
The unusual move by China’s MSS has so far gone largely unnoticed by the international media. In general, it is normal for a government agency of any country to make statements regarding the diplomatic affairs in which it is involved. What is unusual is for a security or intelligence agency, even if it is involved in diplomatic affairs, to interfere in decisions on such high-level matters as the conditions for meeting with the head of state of a very important foreign nation.
This move reveals certain changes in Xi’s diplomatic approach. Allowing the high-profile involvement of the national security apparatus in diplomatic affairs means that Xi Jinping is placing national security at the center of his foreign policy.
