President Joe Biden raised concerns over China’s crackdown on pro-democracy politicians and protestors in Hong Kong, in a first conversation as U.S. leader with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping that displayed Washington’s resolve to maintain its tough stance with Beijing.

Biden also voiced concerns over Beijing’s “human rights abuses in Xinjiang, and increasingly assertive actions in the region, including toward Taiwan,” as well as China’s “coercive and unfair economic practices,” according to a readout released by the White House.

The fact that the call took place later than usual for the two heads of state shouldn’t be seen as a snub, but as a signal that the relationship was important and the new U.S. administration needed time to prepare for it, said author and commentator on Sino-U.S. relations Deng Yuwen.

While Biden’s style does not seem as brusque as former president Donald Trump’s, the substance of the call still indicated a hardline stance toward China, he said. Biden’s more gentle delivery may help thaw the ice between the two nations, but the standoff continues.

Biden’s call showed that his administration holds human rights and freedom as core issues, said Deng, while Beijing is also not likely to budge on its stance. He predicted that clashes will happen sooner rather than later.

“The clash may focus on some specific things, such as demanding that China withdraw the national security law in Hong Kong. But China will not agree, so the demands might be to ask China not go over the top in the treatment of political opponents, such as Jimmy Lai,” said Deng. Lai is the founder of Apple Daily publisher Next Digital and is in prison awaiting trial on national security law charges.

Biden’s attitude toward Xi in the phone call was markedly different from his stance toward Russian President Vladimir Putin, which has been more fraught, said Hui Ching, research director at Hong Kong Zhi Ming Institute. While America’s overall stance toward China remains the same, there will be some adjustment of policies, he said.

“What’s interesting is that the whole conversation started with Lunar New Year, which made the whole conversation a lot more amiable,” said Hui.

Xinjiang and Hong Kong remains two extremely important issues, as they were mentioned in this first conversation, said international relations scholar Derek Yuen.

“It could be an indication that on these two topics, the two countries are less likely to reach a compromise,” he said. But since both sides are aware of each other’s bottom line, they may not become major points of contention, he said.

On Hong Kong, Biden is unable to soften the hardline stance of U.S. lawmakers. Even so, the two countries will most likely continue to work together, in spite of their differences on such topics.

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