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President Biden recently had a conversation with the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, where he expressed the US stance on various matters. The White House disclosed that Xi responded in a manner suggesting disregard for Biden’s position.
No, Xi didn’t use those exact terms.
But close enough.
During the call, Biden highlighted the significance of maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, upholding the rule of law and freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, and America’s unwavering commitment to the denuclearization of North Korea, as per the White House statement.
And he raised “concerns” over climate change, China’s “support for Russia’s defense industrial base” and its “unfair trade policies,” etc., etc.
Yet Xi, per Beijing’s readout afterward, “stressed” that Taiwan was a “red line that must not be crossed.”
He threatened that, “in the face” of (supposed US) efforts to encourage Taiwan independence, “China is not going to sit on its hands.”
In response, Xi criticized Washington for implementing measures that he believes hinder China’s trade and technological advancements and for imposing sanctions on Chinese entities, which he perceives as creating potential risks.
If Washington insists “on containing China’s high-tech development and depriving China of its legitimate right to development,” Xi lectured Biden, “China is not going to sit back and watch.”
Indeed, the two nations could “slide into conflict.”
The Chinese account paints Biden as defensive, saying he reiterated the US objective “not to change China’s system” and that Washington doesn’t support “Taiwan independence” but rather “follows the one-China policy.”
Which side’s “readout” is more accurate?
Consider their respective records of action.
China provokes Taiwan incessantly, sends fentanyl ingredients to Mexico, utterly abandons its treaty promises to let freedom ring in Hong Kong, deploys spy balloons over America, aids Russia in its war on Ukraine, claims the South China Sea is its territory, pumps ever more carbon into the air despite John Kerry’s pleas . . .
The list is positively endless.
Biden, meanwhile has taken not one meaningful public step that’s led to China to stand down: The White House didn’t even let Americans know about the spy balloon until regular citizens spotted it.
Maybe Beijing has damning dirt on the Biden family’s multimillion-dollar “business” dealings in China, or perhaps the president plays rabbit simply because he always fears overseas “escalation.”
Whether it’s words or actions, the bottom line remains: Xi bullies, and Biden just blathers.
