In response to President Biden’s meeting with President Xi Jinping of China on Wednesday, Carolyn Nash, Asia Advocacy Director, Amnesty International USA, said:
“The question isn’t whether Biden talks about human rights with Xi, Jokowi, and other Indo-Pacific leaders. It’s whether he understands and makes clear that no government, including his own, will realize economic, security, or climate progress while denying rights and jeopardizing people’s safety.
“The economic relationship between the US and China is impacted by abusive labor practices in Xinjiang and by the unfair competition they create for climate-responsible industries to develop. The climate advances the US can expect in partnership with Vietnam and Indonesia are contingent on these governments not criminalizing free speech and activism. The Biden administration must understand that human rights abuses limit what is possible in every area that the US government cares about in its regional partnerships.”