Video: After Biden Calls Xi A "Dictator", Blinken's Reaction

A video of Blinken flinching on camera at the usage of the word has now gone viral on social media.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reacted with a flinch and a disapproving shake of the head when President Joe Biden went off the script to describe his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping as a "dictator". Blinken's face when Biden calls President Xi a dictator 🤣🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/2sAPeGxwlZ

President Jinping stepped onto American soil for the first time in six years, embarking on a high-stakes summit with President Biden aimed at mending frayed ties and restoring normalcy to bilateral relations between the two nations. 

The two leaders met Wednesday morning before the annual summit of the 21-member Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. The summit heralded their first face-to-face meeting in a year, following months of intensive diplomatic efforts to lay the groundwork for this critical dialogue, amidst mounting tensions across a spectrum of issues, including trade, human rights, and the pandemic.