Biden, Xi call navigates Philippines and Taiwan tensions
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[April 03, 2024]
By Nandita Bose, David Lawder and Michael Martina
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden sought to manage tensions
over the South China Sea and Taiwan's May presidential inauguration in a
call with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday, their first direct
talks since meeting in November.
Biden used the call to emphasize "the importance of maintaining peace
and stability across the Taiwan Strait and the rule of law and freedom
of navigation in the South China Sea," the White House said in a
statement.
Xi said ties between the China and the U.S. are beginning to stabilize,
but warned that they could "slide into conflict or confrontation,"
according to China's official Xinhua news agency.
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told a briefing
after the call that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken would travel
to China in the coming weeks. That follows a trip this week by Treasury
Secretary Janet Yellen.
The nearly two-hour call between the leaders - described by Kirby as
"business-like" - comes ahead of meetings next week between Biden,
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Philippines President
Ferdinand Marcos as China flexes its military might.
On Monday, a senior U.S. administration official said the U.S. and
Chinese militaries would hold maritime talks this week in Honolulu.
Washington has expressed concern over China's coast guard's use of water
cannons on Philippines vessels near Second Thomas Shoal in a disputed
section of the South China Sea.
An escalating diplomatic row and recent maritime run-ins between the two
Asian countries has made it a potential flashpoint between the U.S. and
China.
Beijing claims vast portions of the South China Sea, sometimes in direct
opposition to international law.
"China seems determined to continue to run these gray zone operations,
driving the U.S.-Philippine alliance and Philippines-Japan security ties
closer, which we’ll see on display next week," said Gregory Poling, a
South China Sea expert at the Center for Strategic and International
Studies, referring to the trilateral summit in Washington.
'CREATING RISKS'
Xi and Biden also discussed U.S. efforts to block certain U.S.
technologies, including advanced semiconductors, from export to China.
Xi warned Biden that the U.S. is "not de-risking but creating risks" by
suppressing China's trade and technology development and adding new
entities to U.S. sanctions lists.
Biden told Xi the U.S. "will continue to take necessary actions to
prevent advanced U.S. technologies from being used to undermine our
national security, without unduly limiting trade and investment,"
according to the White House.
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Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he walks with U.S. President
Joe Biden at Filoli estate on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, in Woodside, California, U.S.,
November 15, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo
Kirby said Biden broached U.S. concerns about popular social media
app TikTok, which faces proposed U.S. legislation that would force
its Chinese-owner ByteDance to divest over data security and
disinformation concerns.
"He made it clear to President Xi that this was not about a ban of
the application, but rather our interest in divestiture so that the
national security interests, and the data security of the American
people can be protected," Kirby said.
TAIWAN TEST
China's response to Taiwan's presidential inauguration in May will
test the stability of relations between Beijing and Washington.
China regards Taiwan, a self-governed island with democratic
elections, as part of its territory and recently dropped language
about a "peaceful reunification" from its budget. Taiwan strongly
objects to China's sovereignty claims and says only the island's
people can decide their future.
Taiwan's current Vice President Lai Ching-te, who Beijing views as a
separatist, won the presidency in January and Beijing has increased
pressure on Taiwan ahead of his swearing in.
Xi urged Washington to translate "Biden's commitment of not
supporting 'Taiwan independence'" into concrete actions, Xinhua
reported.
Biden and Xi agreed in November to reopen military communications
and cooperate to curb fentanyl production. After that meeting, Biden
told reporters he had not changed his view that Xi is a dictator, a
comment that China called "extremely absurd."
But the two have looked to smooth over a rocky period in relations
that took a turn for the worse after a suspected Chinese
surveillance balloon transited the U.S. and was shot down by a U.S.
fighter jet last year.
Biden and Xi's call also addressed U.S. concerns over China's
support for Russia's war against Ukraine, its economic trade
practices, human rights abuses in Xinjiang and the denuclearization
of the Korean peninsula, the White House said.
(Reporting by Nandita Bose, David Lawder, Michael Martina and David
Brunnstrom in Washington, Ethan Wang, Ella Cao and Ryan Woo in
Beijing, Additional reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Heather
Timmons, Michael Perry and Josie Kao)
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