Senior American and Chinese officials recently met in Beijing to discuss plans for a call between President Biden and China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, as well as talks between their military commanders in the region, in an effort to stabilize relations between the two countries. The White House revealed that they were "planning for a leader-level call in the coming weeks." The discussions, which took place over two days, aimed to address tensions and demonstrate the ability of the two powers to manage their differences. The Biden administration has been working to ease tensions with China while also applying pressure by restricting China's access to the U.S. economy and technology. The talks between officials, following a meeting between Biden and Xi in November, also focused on scheduling a potential meeting between the two leaders in the coming months. Additionally, both sides agreed to a video call between their top military commanders in the region, with the hope of reducing the risk of miscommunication during a crisis. While the discussions were described as "candid, substantive, and constructive," both sides emphasized remaining differences. The American officials raised concerns about narcotics entering the U.S. and the detention of American citizens in China. Further talks between American and Chinese officials are scheduled to take place in downtown Beijing. However, it seems that more progress has been made on security issues than on the economic disputes that divide the two countries. The U.S. has been pressing China to address overcapacity concerns, while China has denied that overcapacity is an issue.