Luxon said he may have a brief, informal “pull-aside” with Biden this weekend.

But his focus seems to be squarely on China.

Everything is going according to plan – Luxon and President Xi Jinping are meeting for the first time this morning.

Luxon said it will be a “very formal” meeting, reflecting the fact that New Zealand and China have a strong, long-standing relationship spanning more than 50 years.

“We still see great opportunities for us to cooperate in the areas of trade, especially around our primary industries but also around tourism or education, and other areas around renewable energy and climate change.”

These topics will almost certainly feature on the pair’s bilateral agenda this morning as the two leaders, according to Luxon, look to further deepen the relationship between New Zealand and China.

That relationship received something of a blessing earlier this year, when Premier Li Qiang visited New Zealand.

“China is ready to be part of New Zealand’s drive to double the value of exports over the next decade,” Li said during the trip.

That sentiment was echoed by Luxon at the time, and now he is turning his government’s focus further toward China.

“A big focus for us this year has been Australia, Pacific Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia.

“Next year we will focus on India and China and we will continue with some of the same rhythm that we have seen this year,” he said, adding that he will most likely go to Beijing in 2025.

Luxon has also indicated that a trip to India is in the offing in 2025.

But a closer trade link with China is something Labour’s foreign affairs spokesman, David Parker, welcomes.

“They are our biggest trading partner – they don’t impose tariffs on us and they don’t threaten to.”

But he also sounds a warning: “China is doing some things we don’t agree with”.

“They are a communist one-party state, they suppress free speech, they do some things in the Pacific that we don’t like and sometimes they interfere in other countries.”

Parker’s words do not appear to be lost on Luxon, who acknowledges that New Zealand and China have very different political systems and histories.

“We (he and Xi) will talk about the regional interests that we have and some areas of concern. That includes the Taiwan Strait and North Korea.”

Luxon said questions around China’s involvement in global conflicts will also be raised – “especially with what we’re seeing in terms of Russia, North Korea and Ukraine coming together in the way they have”.

He echoed a line used by former prime ministers Jacinda Ardern and Chris Hipkins – both of whom met with President Xi during their time in office.

“We (raise these issues) publicly and we do it privately — but we will raise them.”