China's Xi Starts His Wooing of US

Xi Jinping, China's expected next leader, began a week of wooing America as he met with President Barack Obama for the first time, kicking off a visit that could shape the bilateral relationship for a decade to come. But even as President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden sought to strike a rapport with China's heir apparent, they pressed him publicly and, aides said, privately on many of the issues bedeviling relations between the world's two largest economies, including trade and human rights.

US officials see Mr. Xi's trip as a rare opportunity for officials, lawmakers and business leaders to get to know the man who is expected to be promoted to Communist Party chief—the nation's top job—in a once-a-decade leadership change in October or November. In remarks at a luncheon in Mr. Xi's honor, Vice President Biden spoke at length about U.S. concerns on issues including intellectual property rights, currency policy and forced technology transfers, as well as China's veto of a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning the brutal Syria crackdown.