Bill Gates to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday

Microsoft’s co-founder Bill Gates on Wednesday arrived in China first time since 2019 and is expected to have a one-on-one meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The meeting could take place on Friday, and the agenda of the meeting is still unknown. Gates on Wednesday tweeted that he would meet with partners who had been working on global health and development challenges with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Gates quit Microsoft’s board in 2020 to focus on philanthropic works related to global health, education and climate change. He had earlier quit his executive role at the company in 2008.

Xi’s first meeting with foreign entrepreneur afterlong time

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The meeting between Gates and Xi Jinping would mark the end of a prolonged period during which Xi refrained from meeting foreign private entrepreneurs and business leaders, mainly due to travel restrictions imposed by China amid the pandemic.

The last reported meeting between Xi and Gates took place in 2015 at the Boao Forum in Hainan province. However, in early 2020, Xi expressed his gratitude to Gates and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for their pledge of assistance to China in its fight against COVID-19, which included a $5 million donation.

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While several foreign CEOs have visited China since its reopening earlier this year, their meetings have primarily been with government officials. For instance, Premier Li Qiang met with a group of foreign CEOs, including Apple's Tim Cook, in March, and Tesla's Elon Musk reportedly met with Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang last month.

White House not kept in loop?

Regarding Gates's visit, the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, stated that she had limited information and was uncertain whether Gates had been in contact with the US administration or vice versa. She mentioned that Gates would provide details about his trip himself.

Gates'visit precedes a long-awaited trip by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China, scheduled for June 18-19. The purpose of Blinken's visit is to stabilise relations between the two largest economies in the world, which also happen to be strategic rivals. During a tense call between Blinken and China's Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Wednesday, Qin urged the United States to refrain from meddling in China's affairs and undermining its security.

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