Don't play with fire: US to China
China has warned the US not to play with fire on the Taiwan issue. Chinese President Xi Jinping issued this warning in a phone conversation with US President Joe Biden on Thursday. In a report, the UK based media Reuters reported this news.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has warned US President Biden that if he plays with fire, he will get burned.
The two heads of state held a lengthy phone conversation on Thursday (July 28) amid rising tensions between Washington and Beijing over Taiwan.
Relations between China and the United States are now more strained than ever. In the meantime, US officials fear that China will attack Taiwan again. On the other hand, Beijing has been warning about US Congress Speaker Nancy Pelosi's upcoming visit to Taiwan for several days.
Yesterday, Biden and Xi Jinping had a long discussion on the matter in a phone conversation of two hours and 17 minutes. After the talks, China said in a statement that President Xi Jinping urged Biden to be careful.
"The will of the people will not be violated" Xi told Biden, according to sources in China's state-run news agency. If you play with fire you will get burned. I hope the US authorities will understand this clearly.
However, the White House has not made a clear statement on the discussion.
The United States said in a statement, "President Biden emphasized that the policy of the United States on Taiwan has not changed." The United States strongly opposes unilateral efforts that undermine the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait'.
A senior US administration official called the Taiwan talks 'direct and real'.
Besides, they also said that Biden and Xi Jinping are planning to sit for face-to-face talks. Several officials of the Biden administration have said that direct bilateral talks are also being considered.
According to several media sources, Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan in August has been announced. However, Beijing is not taking the visit of this top American politician well.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said on Tuesday, "We will take all measures to protect sovereignty and territorial integrity."
Many U.S. diplomatic and military analysts have warned that China could once again be active in seizing Taiwan amid tensions over the Ukraine-Russia war. As a proponent of the One-China policy, Beijing's current leadership does not support Taiwan's existence as a separate state.
Recently, Joe Biden announced that he will stand by if China attacks Taiwan in a Quad discussion in Japan.