Biden said he would meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali next week.
Washington:
US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday he would ask Chinese President Xi Jinping about his “red lines” to reduce the possibility of conflict after rising tensions over Taiwan when they gather in Bali next week.
A day before flying to Asia, Biden confirmed plans to indirectly meet with Xi on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit, which will be his first encounter since becoming presidents of the world’s two largest economies.
“What I want to do with them when we talk is what each of our red lines is,” Biden said at a news conference after the US midterm election.
Biden said he sought to find out “what he believes to be China’s vital national interests, what I know of the vital interests of the United States, and what they consider to be in conflict with each other.” do or not.”
If there are conflicts, Biden said he hopes to work together on “how to resolve it.”
Biden and Xi have spoken virtually as president, but have not met in person with the Chinese leader, until the recent shutdown of international travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Xi left for the Indonesian resort island anew after securing a historic third term from his Communist Party, while Biden is pulling out after a surprisingly strong performance by his Democrats in mid-term elections.
The two leaders know each other unusually well for two presidents, with Biden visiting China in 2011 to spend time with Xi, when they were both vice presidents.
Eleven years later, tensions have risen sharply over Taiwan with the Biden administration warning that China has extended its deadline to seize the self-governing democracy it claims as part of its territory.
– Biden’s support on Taiwan –
Biden has indicated on three occasions that he is ready to commit to the US military to defend Taiwan, a break with a long-standing policy that has each been backed down by the White House.
Biden insisted on Wednesday that there was no change in the historic US stance of strategic ambiguity over whether Washington would use force in the event of a Chinese aggression.
“The Taiwan doctrine has not changed at all from the beginning,” Biden said, adding that he would discuss Taiwan but also trade and China’s relations with other countries.
US concerns about Taiwan have been greatly relieved by Russia’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine, an operation that until recently was seen as a remote possibility.
Biden reiterated US assessments that China is hesitant to materially support Russia, despite President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Beijing to meet with Xi before the invasion.
“I don’t think China has a lot of respect for Russia or Putin,” Biden said.
“I don’t think they see it as a special alliance. In fact, they’ve kind of kept their distance a little bit.”
Biden, like his predecessor Donald Trump, has identified China as a major global competitor to the United States and has promised to redirect US policy around the challenge.
But the Biden administration has also promised to work with China on shared interests such as climate change.
US climate envoy John Kerry briefly met with his Chinese counterpart Xie Zhenhua at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt, further escalating tensions.
China said it would postpone climate talks, a key focus of Biden angered after an August visit to Taiwan by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat who is second in line for the presidency.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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