Obama's press conundrum in China
U.S. President Barack Obama, left, is greeted by Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, for the dinner hosted by Xi for APEC leaders at the Beijing National Aquatics Center in Beijing, Monday, Nov. 10, 2014. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Beijing (CNN) -- Even as President Obama is expected to raise the issues of democratic rights and press freedoms during a trip to China this week, there is a question whether he will hold his own news conference with reporters covering his three-day stop in Beijing.
White House officials accompanying Obama cautioned leaders in Beijing are still balking at the U.S. proposal for a joint news conference with Chinese President Xi. But consultations with Chinese officials continue on the issue, aides said.
"No final word," one senior administration official said.
A separate official stressed the President may go forward with his own news conference, without Xi, a move that may add pressure to already tense U.S.-Chinese relations.
Obama administration officials prepared reporters for the possibility of limited access to Obama during a background briefing with reporters last week. Reservations among Chinese officials were cited as the sole reason for potential press restrictions.
"If you go back to when Chinese leaders have agreed to joint press availabilities, you'll have a very hard time finding one where they have been willing to take questions from the press," said Brookings Institution analyst Ken Lieberthal at a briefing on the President's trip last week.
"So we want it; they don't. They are the host. That's where we end up," Lieberthal added.
Joint news conferences are a norm for U.S. presidents as they travel much of the world. Generally, Obama and foreign leaders will engage in a news conference described as "2+2" with journalists, meaning two questions each from U.S. and foreign reporters. But there are rare exceptions, such as Obama's visit to Saudi Arabia earlier this year.
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Obama's press conundrum in China