Washington, 14 March 2023 (dpa/MIA) - US President Joe Biden is to "have a conversation" with Chinese leader Xi Jinping at some point in the coming period, US National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, said on Monday.

"I can't give you a date. Because there's no date set, but President Biden has indicated his willingness to have a telephone conversation with President Xi," Sullivan said, after the conclusion of the National People's Congress in China.

China's leadership hosted the National People's Congress in Beijing for nine days, with nearly 3,000 hand-picked delegates, who endowed Xi with a significant increase in power.

Xi also struck unusually sharp tones when referring to the US, accusing Washington and the West of trying to prevent China's rise in the world through a strategy of suppression and containment.

Ties between China and the US have been further tested in recent months by the downing of an alleged Chinese spy balloon in US airspace, in addition to tensions caused by Beijing's claims on Taiwan.

In the US, meanwhile, Biden's government sees China as the biggest geopolitical challenge.

There has been further strain on the relationship since Beijing responded angrily to warnings from Washington that China might supply Russia with weapons that could be used in Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

"All I can tell you is that we have not yet seen the transfer of lethal assistance of weapons from China to Russia for use on the battlefield in Ukraine, but it's something that we're vigilant about and continuing to watch carefully," Sullivan said on Monday.