Joe Biden calls China the ‘most serious competitor’ to the US, in first foreign policy speech
- US president pledges to ‘take on directly the challenges posed [to] our prosperity, security and democratic values’ raised by Beijing
- Relations with China are fraught, with Washington making critical statements about actions in Xinjiang and offering early support to Taiwan
In his first foreign policy address, US President Joe Biden on Thursday described China as the “most serious competitor” to the United States and vowed to confront Beijing on various fronts, including human rights, intellectual property and economic policy.
Appearing at the State Department, Biden said his administration would “take on directly the challenges posed [to] our prosperity, security and democratic values by our most serious competitor: China”.
“We’ll confront China’s economic abuses, counter its aggressive, coercive actions, and push back on China’s attack on human rights, intellectual property and global governance,” he said.
“We’ll compete from a position of strength, by building back better at home, working with our allies and partners, renewing our role in international institutions and reclaiming our credibility and moral authority, much of which has been lost,” Biden said, drawing a contrast with the “America first” ideology that underpinned much of the foreign policy pursued by Donald Trump’s administration.
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Biden calls China the ‘most serious competitor’ to the US, in his first foreign policy address
While pledging to hold the Chinese government to account, Biden said the US also stood ready to “work with Beijing when it’s in America’s interest to do so”, alluding to his administration’s ambition to cooperate on the climate crisis.