After ‘dictators’ jab, Biden set to see Xi soon

WASHINGTON—US President Joe Biden voiced confidence Thursday that he would meet Xi Jinping soon, as he refused to back down after angering Beijing by likening the Chinese leader to “dictators.”

Biden rejected “this theory that the relationship with China is collapsing” and praised talks Monday in Beijing between Xi and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who sought to keep tensions between the two powers in check.

“Secretary Blinken had a great trip to China. I expect to be meeting with President Xi sometime in the future -in the near term,” Biden told a news conference alongside Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Implicitly doubling down on his earlier comments on Xi, Biden said he would not be “avoiding saying what I think (are) the facts” on China.

“It’s just not something I’m going to change very much,” he said.

Biden, speaking two days after Blinken’s trip, said that Xi—who has cemented power like no Chinese leader in decades—was unaware of an alleged surveillance balloon that flew over the US mainland in February.

“The reason why Xi Jinping got very upset in terms of when I shot that balloon down with two box cars full of spy equipment is he didn’t know it was there,” Biden told a political reception at which reporters were present.

“I’m serious. That was the great embarrassment for dictators, when they didn’t know what happened.”

The balloon caused a public uproar in the United States, leading Blinken to cancel his originally scheduled trip to Beijing, even though administration officials privately doubted the threat from the object. AFP