On Wednesday, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded to the statements of US President Joe Biden, in which he described his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, as a “dictator,” stressing that these statements are irresponsible, violate the standards of diplomacy, and are a clear political provocation.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said in a press briefing, “We reject the US side’s remarks, which are extremely ridiculous, irresponsible, contrary to facts, seriously violate diplomatic etiquette, and are a serious attack on China’s political dignity and an outright political provocation”.
“China expresses strong indignation and strong protest,” the spokeswoman added.
The US President Joe Biden had earlier described Chinese President Xi Jinping as a “dictator”, noting that Xi was very embarrassed when a Chinese balloon derailed over the United States recently.
Biden made the remarks during a fundraiser in California, one day after Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Xi on a visit to China aimed at easing tensions between the two countries.
“The reason Xi Jinping was so angry when he dropped that balloon with spy equipment into two wagons is because he didn’t know it was there,” Biden said.
“I’m serious,” Biden added, referring to Xi. “It’s a huge embarrassment for dictators when they don’t know what happened… They weren’t supposed to go there…and he didn’t know that it was there”.
Last Monday, the US Secretary of State met with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Zhang.
“China-US relations are at their lowest level since their establishment, which does not serve the fundamental interests of the two peoples and the common aspirations of the international community,” the Chinese president said.
The Chinese president, Xi Jinping said that China’s policy toward the United States remains firm and stable, and is mainly guided by the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation put forward.
Blinken was scheduled to visit China last February, but the trip was postponed, after Washington said that it had discovered a Chinese balloon that entered the US airspace, with alleged espionage purposes, and shot it down later.
The incident sparked more disputes between the two countries, beside other issues that ignites the tension in relations between the two countries, of which the Taiwanese issue comes at the fore.
