BALI, INDONESIA - The first face-to-face meeting of Chinese and US leaders in years and their agreement on more exchanges portend well for the region and the world, according to officials and analysts in Bali, Indonesia.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Joe Biden in Bali, Indonesia on Nov 14 held three- hour talks in Bali during the Group of 20 Summit. Xi said he looks forward to working together with Biden “in bringing China-US relations back to a track of healthy and stable development, ushering more benefits to our two nations and the world.”

The meeting of the two presidents in Bali is noticed by people in Indonesia and maybe the whole world, as a surprise probably, said Usman Kansong, director general of information and public communication of the Indonesian Ministry of Communication and Informatics.

He said the Nov 14 meeting is the first time in years that the leaders of the two countries sat together to discuss the problems of the world and economic cooperation.  Their bilateral meeting is “a symbol of economic recovery, a symbol of world peace, and a symbol of how to solve our problems in the world together”, he said.

It was an extremely important meeting, and probably the main outcome of the summit. The main achievement is they agreed to engage on different issues at the senior official level.

Michael Vatikiotis, senior advisor from a Switzerland-based private foundation

Responding to a related question at Tuesday’s press briefing in Bali, European Council President Charles Michel noted that China just had its national congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and that the US just had elections. 

“But do we have our own destiny, we have the EU, our own vision about how we should defend our interests,” he said, noting there is need for EC to “rebalance the relationship with China”.

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Michael Vatikiotis, a delegate of G20 Summit and a senior advisor from a Switzerland-based private foundation, said the bilateral meeting itself is an achievement.

“It was an extremely important meeting, and probably the main outcome of the summit,” in a sense that everyone is hoping for them to meet and address issues of concern, he said. “The main achievement is they agreed to engage on different issues at the senior official level.”

Moreover, it is important that “they agree to resume talks on climate change, which is probably the most important issue for all of us”, he said. “That will I think create a better environment for everyone to engage on climate change.”

It is noticeable that “both leaders were able to say openly that they must have a relationship,” he said. “Let’s see what will happen in the next weeks or months in term of official engagement.”

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President Xi told the Biden team that China-US relations should not be a zero-sum game where one side outcompetes or thrives at the expense of the other, and the success of both nations should be seen as opportunities, instead of challenges, for each other.

Jameel Al Theyabi, editor of Saudi Gazette now in Bali, said the Xi-Biden meeting is important and possibly everyone in the world is looking for the result. “It is very good for world peace,” he said.

“Everyone if you ask now in Bali, Indonesia or Saudi, or anywhere in the world will give you the same answer:  it’s a right decision to shake hands, to talk and to negotiate, to have dialogue,” he said.

Such a meeting is to reflect peace in the region and overall, he noted, adding he hopes that countries will solve most of the problems.

Wang Lei in Bali contributed to this report.