Photos Released Show Joe Biden Meeting with Hunter Biden’s Business Partners in China

The National Archives has released photos showing then-Vice President Joe Biden meeting with two of Hunter Biden’s Chinese business associates during a trip to Beijing in December 2013, adding fuel to the ongoing scrutiny over the Biden family’s foreign dealings.

According to the New York Post, the photos show Joe Biden meeting Jonathan Li and Ming Xue, two key figures in BHR Partners, a company co-founded by Hunter Biden, contradicting the president's previous denials of involvement with his son’s business affairs.

Photos Expose New Details About Biden's 2013 Beijing Trip

The newly released images show Joe Biden shaking hands with Jonathan Li, the incoming CEO of BHR Partners, and greeting the company's managing director, Ming Xue, during a visit to China in 2013. At the time, Hunter Biden was involved with BHR Partners, which was officially registered 12 days after the trip. The meeting took place just months before BHR's significant acquisitions, including the purchase of a Congolese cobalt mine in 2016.

While these photos document Biden’s interactions with his son’s business associates, they do not include any images related to another Chinese company, CEFC China Energy, where Hunter Biden was also involved. Hunter Biden has testified that he does not recall his father attending a 2017 lunch with Ye Jianming, the chairman of CEFC, though emails from the time suggest otherwise.

Hunter Biden’s Connections with Xi Jinping

The release also features a photo showing Chinese President Xi Jinping meeting with Hunter Biden during the trip, a meeting that was initially planned to last only two hours but extended to seven hours. Hunter Biden described the interaction in an email to his former associate Devon Archer, calling the experience “pretty amazing.” He joked that his father and Xi were “in love” because of the extended time together, further deepening questions about the Biden family’s dealings in China.

At the time, Xi was in the early stages of his ambitious "Belt and Road" campaign, and Hunter Biden was closely involved with BHR Partners, a company co-founded by him. The meeting with Xi, along with the photos showing Hunter’s direct connections to key Chinese figures, has raised concerns among critics about potential conflicts of interest and unethical behavior.

Lawsuit Leads to Photo Release

The photos were made public following a lawsuit filed by the America First Legal Foundation (AFL), which had demanded more transparency from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). The AFL, which had initiated the lawsuit in September 2022, succeeded in obtaining the photos after a lengthy legal battle.

Originally, NARA had planned to release the images on October 23, 2024, but that release was delayed until after the election, with Biden’s legal representatives reportedly requesting the postponement.

AFL spokespersons pointed to this delay as evidence of an effort to keep the photos hidden until after the 2024 election. “NARA had planned to release these photographs on October 23, 2024 — thirteen days before Election Day,” the AFL’s statement read. “Lawyers for President Biden delayed the release until after Election Day, as they did with other critical records.”

Contradictory Testimonies and Denials

In light of the photo release, Joe Biden’s previous statements denying any involvement with his family’s foreign business dealings are now under increased scrutiny. Biden had repeatedly denied interacting with his son’s business associates, even calling such claims "lies" in a March interview with The Post.

“I did not interact with their partners,” Biden said at the time. “No, I did not have dinner, lunch, or coffee with them. I did not. And it’s just a bunch of lies.”

Hunter Biden, in his testimony during the impeachment inquiry, confirmed that he did meet with some of his father’s business associates, though he claimed the interactions were brief, including the handshake with Li, which he described as a simple greeting. These conflicting testimonies add to the growing controversy surrounding the Biden family's foreign dealings.

Legal Scrutiny of Hunter Biden’s Business Activities

Hunter Biden has faced significant legal challenges over his foreign business activities, including a guilty plea to tax fraud and a pardon for gun charges in December 2024. His involvement in foreign business dealings has come under scrutiny due to his connections with companies in countries like Kazakhstan, Russia, and Ukraine. One notable example was a 2014 dinner that included figures from Kazakhstan, some of whom were involved in significant transactions with Hunter Biden, such as a $142,000 sports car purchased for him by businessman Kenes Rakishev.

Another controversial dinner guest was Vadym Pozharskyi, an adviser at the Ukrainian gas company Burisma, which paid Hunter Biden $1 million annually starting in 2014. Documents from Hunter Biden’s abandoned laptop, including emails and photos, have contradicted Biden’s claims that he never discussed business with his family. These revelations have led some Republicans to accuse Joe Biden of deceiving the public about his role in his family's foreign business dealings.