Xi Jinping

Leaders of the BRICS emerging economies meet in Johannesburg this week looking to widen the bloc's influence and push for a shift in global geopolitics.

South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to host China's President Xi Jinping, India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva for the annual three-day summit starting tomorrow.

US President Joe Biden said Thursday that China's mounting economic problems make the country a "ticking time bomb."

"China is a ticking time bomb in many cases," Biden said at a private fundraising event in the western state of Utah.

The Democrat pointed to the country's high unemployment and aging workforce, saying "China is in trouble."

BELGRADE - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic saw off Chinese Ambassador Chen Bo at Belgrade's Nikola Tesla Airport on Tuesday.

"Endlessly grateful for everything she has done for our country, I wished Chen Bo a safe trip to her homeland, good health and much success on her new duties," Vucic wrote in a post on his buducnostsrbijeav Instagram account.

China's foreign minister Qin Gang was removed from office on Tuesday, state media reported, after not being seen in the public eye for a month.

His absence had sparked a storm of speculation that Qin, considered a confidant of President Xi Jinping, had fallen from grace or was subject to an official investigation.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping met former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger in Beijing on Thursday, state media reported, describing the 100-year-old as a "legendary diplomat".

Kissinger used the visit to call for a rapprochement between the United States and China, which remain at loggerheads over a range of disputes, from human rights to trade and national security.

The top US and Chinese diplomats will hold their second meeting in as many months on Thursday in Jakarta, seeking to manage tensions that risk flaring anew over alleged Chinese hacking.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Sunday said she agreed Washington will listen to Chinese complaints about security-related curbs on U.S. technology exports and might "respond to unintended consequences" as she ended a visit to Beijing aimed at reviving strained relations.

Day 497 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is set to visit Beijing this week, the United States said on July 2, marking the second trip by a cabinet official to China since ties between the world's top two economies deteriorated earlier this year.

US President Joe Biden called Chinese leader Xi Jinping a "dictator".

This happened during a reception in California with the participation of donors of the Democratic Party and in the presence of journalists.