Washington DC

US President Joe Biden claimed on Wednesday (May 1) that "xenophobia" is impeding the growth of China, Japan and India, while arguing that migration has been beneficial for the US economy. Xenophobia refers to a general sense of hatred of foreign people and cultures. 

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Biden's comments came amid alarming rise in racially-inspired attacks on Indian students in the United States and targeted hate crime against Hispanics and South Asian people in the country. 

"One of the reasons why our economy's growing is because of you and many others. Why? Because we welcome immigrants," Biden said at a Washington fundraising event for his 2024 re-election campaign at the beginning of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

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"Why is China stalling so badly economically, why is Japan having trouble, why is Russia, why is India, because they're xenophobic. They don't want immigrants. Immigrants are what makes us strong," Biden said, without referring to hate crimes committed against immigrants in the United States.

The International Monetary Fund forecast last month said that the countries would see their growth decelerate in 2024 as compared to 2023 due to prevailing economic climate.

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Contrary to Biden's assessment, the IMF estimated that Indian economy's gross domestic product will grow at 6.5 per cent in the next financial year, according to its World Economic Outlook released last month. 

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The agency also revised upwards the growth figure for 2023-24 to 7.8 per cent from 6.7 per cent it had forecast in January.

The IMF forecast that the United States would grow at 2.7 per cent, slightly more than its 2.5 per cent rate last year. 

Concern over illegal migration has become a top issue for the US voters ahead of November's presidential election.

In a recent interview with the TIME magazine, Republican presidential nominee and former president Donald Trump suggested that if elected, he would take up a massive deportation program to deport about 15-20 million people from the US, in what Trump described were "illegal migrants". 

Biden has opposed the rhetoric of his Republican opponent Donald Trump as anti-immigrant. 

When Trump was asked about his vow to launch the largest deportation operation in American history, the former US president said: "Because we have no choice."

"I don't believe this is sustainable for a country, what's happening to us, with probably 15 million and maybe as many as 20 million by the time Biden's out. Twenty million people, many of them from jails, many of them from prisons, many of them from mental institutions."

(With inputs from agencies)