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Joe Biden raises objection to China's 'coercive aggressive actions toward Taiwan' in his first meeting with Xi Jinping

by Trans World Features | @twfindia 14 Nov 2022, 09:34 pm

Washington/IBNS: US President Joe Biden Monday raised objections to China’s "coercive and increasingly aggressive actions toward Taiwan" which according to him undermine peace and stability across the strait in his first face-to-face meeting with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

He said the situation will jeopardize global prosperity.

During their meeting, Biden and Xi Jinping agreed that nuclear war should never be fought and underscored their opposition to the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine.

"President Biden and President Xi reiterated their agreement that a nuclear war should never be fought and can never be won and underscored their opposition to the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine," The White House said in a statement.

The meeting was both the leaders' first face-to-face talks since Biden took office and was on the sidelines of a G20 meeting expected to be dominated by the war in Ukraine.

In the long-awaited meeting, President Biden explained that the United States will continue to compete vigorously with China by "investing in sources of strength at home and aligning efforts with allies and partners around the world."

However, both leaders reiterated that competition should not veer into conflict and underscored that the United States and China must manage the competition responsibly and maintain open lines of communication.

"The two leaders discussed the importance of developing principles that would advance these goals and tasked their teams to discuss them further," the White House statement said.

President Biden underscored that the United States and China must work together to address transnational challenges such as climate change, global macroeconomic stability including debt relief, health security, and global food security as "that is what the international community expects".

He raised ongoing concerns about China’s non-market economic practices, which harm American workers and families, and workers and families around the world.

Biden underscored that "it is a priority for us to resolve the cases of American citizens who are wrongfully detained or subject to exit bans in China."

The US Biden raised his concerns about North Korea’s "provocative behaviour", and noted all members of the international community have an interest in encouraging them to act responsibly.