Joe Biden says China has no 'imminent' plans to invade Taiwan

United States President Joe Biden said on Monday (November 14) that China has no "imminent" plans to invade Taiwan. Biden's remarkscame after themeeting with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

The world was eagerly watching Biden-Xi's first in-person talks since 2017 which happened on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia. Both leaders discussed various issues including the Ukraine war, North Korea tensions, cooperation, etc.

After the meeting, Biden told a news conference: "I do not think there is any imminent attempt on the part of China to invade Taiwan. I made it clear that we want to see cross-strait issues peacefully resolved, and so it never has to come to that."

"I'm convinced that he understood exactly what I was saying; I understood what he was saying," Biden added.

Tensions have been simmering after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's August trip to Taiwan, the self-governed democratic island which Beijing claims as its territory. The visit jeopardised Sino-US relations as in response, China staged massive military exercises.

After Pelosi, several other US diplomats also visited the island, flaring up tensions between China and US. China even claimed that, in case needed, it will use force to unite the two territories.

Beijing has maintained that its approach to Taiwan has not changed. The recent actions show and some analysts also believe that Bejing might engage in a full-scale conflict with Taiwan. At its recently concluded congress, the Communist Party for the first time enshrined its opposition to Taiwanese independence in its constitution.

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After the latest meeting, Biden said that the US one-China policy concerning Taiwan had not changed. The readout of the leaders' meeting noted that Biden was more explicitly critical of China's pressure on Taiwan than in statements earlier this year following his calls with Xi.

According to the readout, Biden raised objections to China's "coercive and increasingly aggressive actions toward Taiwan." The US president said that Beijing's actions undermined peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and in the broader region.

In response, Xi was also explicit about Taiwan. He called it the "first red line" that must not be crossed in China-US relations.

After the meeting, the Chinese foreign ministry noted Biden's assurances and called on the United States to "match its words with action and abide by the One-China policy" of recognising only Beijing.

It said that Xi "stressed that the Taiwan question is at the very core of China's core interests, the bedrock of the political foundation of China-US relations and the first red line that must not be crossed in China-US relations."

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