Beijing ( CNN ) -- Even as President Obama is expected to raise the issues of democratic rights and press freedoms during a trip to China this week , there is a question whether he will hold his own news conference with reporters covering his three-day stop in Beijing . White House officials accompanying Obama cautioned leaders in Beijing are still balking at the U.S. proposal for a joint news conference with Chinese President Xi . But consultations with Chinese officials continue on the issue , aides said . `` No final word , '' one senior administration official said . A separate official stressed the President may go forward with his own news conference , without Xi , a move that may add pressure to already tense U.S.-Chinese relations . Obama administration officials prepared reporters for the possibility of limited access to Obama during a background briefing with reporters last week . Reservations among Chinese officials were cited as the sole reason for potential press restrictions . `` If you go back to when Chinese leaders have agreed to joint press availabilities , you 'll have a very hard time finding one where they have been willing to take questions from the press , '' said Brookings Institution analyst Ken Lieberthal at a briefing on the President 's trip last week . `` So we want it ; they do n't . They are the host . That 's where we end up , '' Lieberthal added . Joint news conferences are a norm for U.S. presidents as they travel much of the world . Generally , Obama and foreign leaders will engage in a news conference described as `` 2+2 '' with journalists , meaning two questions each from U.S. and foreign reporters . But there are rare exceptions , such as Obama 's visit to Saudi Arabia earlier this year . National Security Advisor Susan Rice raised the issue of press access with her Beijing counterparts in the weeks leading to the President 's visit , which will include a formal bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi at a summit of APEC leaders . The President is scheduled to deliver a speech to the CEOs gathered at the APEC summit Monday . Obama and Xi will have `` candid and in-depth conversations '' on a range of issues , Rice told reporters last week . In addition to their meeting , both leaders will deliver statements to the media . But the possibility of taking questions remains the sticking point . Press freedom and human rights in China remain a major concern for the United States , White House officials said . Recent democracy protests in Hong Kong have only served to elevate the issue for Obama , aides said . `` We 've been very clear about our views and concerns about Hong Kong and other aspects of human rights and civil liberties in China , as we have been elsewhere , '' Rice said . Unlike other recent trips abroad for Obama , he is not scheduled to meet with human rights activists or engage in other `` person to person '' events while in China . He is on a tight time line , administration officials explained . Aides said the President will hold a town hall with young Burmese in Myanmar , during the second stop of Obama 's three-nation tour which ends at the G-20 summit in Australia later this week . The threat posed by Chinese hackers to U.S. businesses will also figure prominently in talks between the two leaders . `` With respect to China , clearly the issues of cybersecurity will be prominent on our bilateral agenda . This is a source of grave concern to the United States , '' Rice said Friday . `` We have reiterated on every occasion the fact that we oppose any efforts -- official or unofficial -- to engage in cyberespionage for commercial gain or other purposes , '' she added . Obama and Xi have fielded questions from reporters in the past , but on U.S. soil . At a joint news conference in California last year , Xi was pressed by an American reporter on the issue of cybersecurity . Xi responded China has its own concerns with hackers . `` China is a victim of cyber attacks , and we hope that earnest measures can be taken to resolve this matter , '' Xi said last year .
Beijing balks at proposal for joint news conference with U.S. , Chinese presidents . `` So we want it ; they do n't . They are the host . That 's where we end up , '' analyst says . Obama will also visit Myanmar and Australia during his Asia trip this week .