The US and China will experience “extreme competition” on the global economic scene, but will not come into direct conflict with each other, President Biden said on Sunday.
In an interview aired on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” the president told anchor Norah O’Donnell that there was no reason for the US and China to go to war, but that the two superpowers are likely to be economically viable for the next few years. collide with each other. .
The question is: I said it [China’s President Xi Jinping] always, that we don’t have to have a conflict, ” Biden told CBS.
“But there will be extreme competition. And I’m not going to do it the way he knows,” the president continued, seemingly referring to the Trump administration’s approach to China, which has spent years trying to achieve significant trade. accord with China in efforts that eventually sputtered.
“We are going to focus on international traffic rules,” continued Biden.
The president’s comments are some of his first comments on Chinese policy since taking office. He recently made extensive comments on US-China policy in December, when he labeled the Trump administration’s approach as “ backwards ” and vowed to “ really make it clear to China that there are international rules that if you want to play. , we will play with you. If you don’t, we won’t play. “
“It’s not about punishing them for the COVID virus; it’s about insisting that there are international standards that are adhered to, ”Biden said at the time.
The Chinese government went on inauguration day last month to punish dozens of Trump administration officials, a move condemned by Biden’s White House but failed reciprocal action.