Day two: Cybersecurity issue takes hold
Obama described the talks as “terrific” as he and Xi walked side by side Saturday through the manicured gardens of the sprawling Sunnylands estate. In the spirit of the informal atmosphere at the meetings, the men went without jackets and ties.
The presidents rejoined advisers for a session expected to focus on economic issues, along with additional discussions on North Korea and cybersecurity.
Neither leader was expected to make a closing statement before the gathering wrapped up in the early afternoon. U.S. and Chinese officials planned to address reporters after the summit.
At a news conference Friday night, Obama said the United States and China were in “uncharted waters” regarding computer security. The presidents carefully avoided accusing each other’s nation of high-tech intrusions, but acknowledged an urgent need to find a common approach on addressing the matter.
Obama also sought to distinguish between China’s alleged cyberspying and his own government’s monitoring of U.S. phone and Internet records. He insisted the two issues were separate and distinct, and that concerns over hacking and intellectual property theft shouldn’t be confused with the debate over how governments collect data to combat terrorist threats.
“That’s a conversation that I welcome,” he said.
Xi, who called rapid technological advancements a “double-edged sword,” claimed no responsibility for China’s alleged cyberespionage. He said China was also a victim of cyberspying but did not assign any blame.
U.S. officials cast the summit as an opportunity for Obama and Xi to hold candid talks on the many issues that define the relationship between the two powers, including the economy, climate change and North Korea’s nuclear provocations.
It was the leaders’ first meeting since Xi took office in March.
They originally were scheduled to hold their first talks in September, on the sidelines of an economic summit in Russia. But both countries agreed there was a need to meet earlier.
U.S. officials see Xi as a potentially new kind of Chinese leader. He has deeper ties to the U.S. than many of his predecessors and appears more comfortable in public than the last president, Hu Jintao, with whom Obama never developed a strong personal rapport.
Many of the same issues that defined Obama’s relationship with Hu remain.
Xi was expected to press China’s claims of business discrimination in U.S. markets and to express concern over Obama’s efforts to expand U.S. influence in the Asia-Pacific region. China sees that as an attempt to contain its growing power.
On North Korea, U.S. officials said Obama was looking to build on Xi’s apparent impatience with North Korea’s nuclear provocations. The U.S. has welcomed Xi’s recent calls for North Korea to return to nuclear talks, though it’s unclear whether the North is ready to change its behavior.
Xi was due to depart for China in the afternoon. Obama planned to stay in California through the weekend, though he had not public events planned.
