Officials say he will reassure Beijing that US has fiscal house in order

WASHINGTON - In his visit to China later this month, United States Vice-President Joe Biden will likely discuss the various steps that the US will take to resolve its fiscal woes and attempt to build a relationship with the likely new president of China, said US officials on Monday.

Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping. [Photo/Xinhua]

Biden will depart for China on Tuesday on his first East Asian trip as vice-president. He will also visit Mongolia and Japan.

US officials said Biden will try to assure Chinese leaders, especially Vice-President Xi Jinping who will likely succeed President Hu Jintao next year, that the US will fix its multitude of fiscal problems.

Biden's visit will be the first of planned visits between vice-presidents from both China and the US that was hashed out by President Hu's visit to Washington in January.

Biden's visit comes during a tense time between the two nations. The global effects of the US debt crisis, appreciation of the Chinese currency and a looming arms sales to Taiwan as well as other regional security issues are expected to be discussed during the trip.

Treasury Department Under Secretary for International Affairs Lael Brainard said though China has slowly appreciated its currency, Biden will press Beijing to allow the currency to rise faster.

Other US officials de-emphasized the economic issues between the two nations and said the visit will carry more significance toward the future of China-US relations.

"Simply put, we're investing in the future of the US-China relationship," said Tony Blinken, Biden's national security adviser, in a conference call Monday.

"One of the primary purposes of the trip is to get to know China's future leadership, to build a relationship with Vice-President Xi, and to discuss with him and other Chinese leaders the full breadth of issues in the US-China relationship."

US experts agreed with Blinken's assessment.

"There is no reason for him (Biden) to complain about China's currency policy because the renminbi is rising very quickly against the US dollar right now and its currency is doing fine," said Derek Scissors at the Heritage Foundation. "What he is really doing is to arrange an important trip with Xi Jinping."

During his four-day visit in China, Biden will meet with Xi and Premier Wen Jiabao on his first day in Beijing before attending a banquet hosted by Xi, Blinken said.

On the second day, Biden will attend a meeting with US and Chinese business leaders before attending a meeting with President Hu.

He will then travel to Chengdu, capital city of Southwest China's Sichuan province, and give a speech on US-China relations at Sichuan University. That is followed by a visit (with Xi) to the nearby city of Dujiangyan to get a glimpse of a high school rebuilt after the devastating 2008 earthquake.

On the last day of the trip, Biden and Xi will have an informal dinner at a local restaurant in Chengdu.

Though Biden's trip is to build rapport with Xi, the two sides will also likely discuss one key issue: the looming US arms sales to Taiwan.

US magazine Defense News reported Sunday that a Pentagon delegation flew to Taipei to inform them that Washington will reject Taiwan's bid to buy 66 F-16C/D jets and instead offer to upgrade the island's older F-16A/Bs.

A White House official said on Monday that there is no change in the US' stance and it will remain committed to Taiwan's defense.

"We take our obligation under the Taiwan Relations Act very seriously and we don't negotiate these issues with China," said Danny Russell, senior White House adviser on Asia, in a recent conference call.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has announced that Obama will make a decision about the arms sale by Oct 1.