: “We Will Stand Firmly in Defense of American Interests”
In his State of the Union address, President Joe Biden took a defiant stance on Beijing after the US military shot down a spy balloon flying over the mainland US. He warned that the US would act to protect its sovereignty when threatened. The military is now searching for the wreckage of the balloon to gain insight into its years of espionage operations. Biden also mentioned the need to compete rather than to enter into conflict with China and the US is strengthening its alliances in the region. The House Armed Services Committee held its first hearing of the year focused on China with Republicans urging the administration to be more aggressive. China is also increasing its nuclear forces and has forged ties with multiple countries.
President Biden delivers his first State of the Union address before the joint session of Congress
President Biden delivers the State of the Union address in the chamber of the US Capitol on March 1, 2022 in Washington, DC. Credit – Win McNamee – Getty Images
President Joe Biden took a defiant stance on Beijing during his State of the Union address on Tuesday, just three days after the US military shot down a spy balloon that was flying over the mainland United States.
“Make no mistake, as we made clear last week, when China threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country,” he said. “And we have.” Calling out China’s increasingly autocratic leader, Biden went off script and shouted, “Name me a world leader who would swap places with Xi Jinping.”
The US Navy is now scouring the Atlantic to collect remains of the mammoth balloon that caught American attention and sparked an international dispute. The US military is looking for information to understand how a fleet of high-altitude balloons equipped with cameras and solar arrays have been able to traverse American airspace undetected multiple times for years.
The diplomatic fallout was significant, widening rifts between Washington and Beijing at several points. The Pentagon admitted Tuesday that China’s Defense Minister Wei Fenghe turned down a request to speak with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin after a US fighter jet shot down the balloon. Foreign Minister Antony Blinken postponed a trip to Beijing on Friday hours ahead of his scheduled departure, missing an opportunity for diplomatic détente on shared global challenges.
During his speech, Biden said he had told President Xi he did not want the two nations to go to war. “I made it clear to President Xi that we seek competition, not conflict,” he said.
Continue reading: Chinese balloon wreckage could provide clues to years of espionage operations
Open conflict between the world’s two largest economies would dwarf the damage done to the global economy by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The US and China have intertwined supply chains, international governance mechanisms and bilateral trade that reached a record $760 billion last year.
But the two nations also face a resurgence of nationalism, concerted military build-ups, and increasingly bellicose rhetoric on both sides. And so the great power competition between the US and China is becoming increasingly militarized.
China is expanding its nuclear forces and increasing its threats against the US-allied island of Taiwan. The US is responding by strengthening alliances across the Asia-Pacific region and sending additional forces and firepower to places like Guam and the Philippines.
“To be clear, winning the competition with China should unite us all,” Biden said. “We are facing major challenges worldwide.”
Republicans in Congress have urged the administration to be more aggressive, a sentiment that has deepened since the balloon flew over. “China is spying on us,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia, yelled at the president when he mentioned competition between the two countries.
Continue reading: How the Chinese balloon was shot down by the US military
Earlier Tuesday, the House Armed Services Committee held its first hearing of the year, focused on China. “We must stop being naïve in the face of the threat we face from China,” Representative Mike Rogers of Alabama, Chairman of the Republican Committee. “We no longer have the luxury of time. We must act now to forestall this threat.”
The Biden administration has described Beijing as a “pace challenger” that has the potential to transform the international order. In recent years, as China has accumulated economic power, it has forged close ties with governments in Africa, Latin America, and Central and Southeast Asia.
The government has stated that Beijing plans to triple its nuclear warheads to 1,000 by 2030 while building hundreds of new silos capable of launching long-range ballistic missiles potentially targeting the US and its nuclear forces far away. While the US has a more than 10-to-1 advantage over China in the number of nuclear warheads and the weapons to supply them, the Pentagon sees a need to prepare for the coming decades.
But China faces challenges at home as it struggles to emerge from COVID-19 and overcome economic headwinds and an aging population. Biden tries to increase pressure on President Xi. In his first two years, Biden has strengthened military ties with Australia and Japan to rein in China’s regional ambitions, and he has successfully lobbied the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to work together to address the challenges China has posed.
– with reporting from Mini Racker/Washington
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