China’s Xi Jinping issues chilling ‘red line’ threat over Taiwan to Joe Biden

Xi Jinping warned Joe Biden against standing in the way of China’s plans for Taiwan, as the US president sought to avoid a ‘new Cold War’ with the Communist power.

Chairman Xi Jinping issued a “red line” warning over Taiwan during a three-hour meeting with US president Joe Biden, according to China’s foreign ministry

In their first in-person meeting since Biden entered the White House, Xi told Biden that China could resort to “use of force” if the United States stands in the way of his Communist Party’s efforts to “peacefully” seize control of “China’s Taiwan”.

“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-U. S. relations,” Xi told Biden, according to the China’s state-controlled news agency, Xinhua.

“We will continue to strive for peaceful reunification with the greatest sincerity and the utmost effort, but we will never promise to renounce the use of force.”

US President Joe Biden and China's Chairman Xi Jinping meet on the sidelines of the G20 Summit. Picture: AFP

“Resolving the Taiwan question is a matter for the Chinese and China’s internal affair,” Xi added, according to state media.

“Anyone that seeks to split Taiwan from China will be violating the fundamental interests of the Chinese nation.”

Speaking after the meeting, Biden did not address the “red line” or Xi’s threat of force, but added that he believed China would not attempt to invade the island in the near future.

“I do not think there is any imminent attempt on the part of China to invade Taiwan,” Biden said, dismissing fears of a new Cold War.

The president added that the US would face the “shared threats”, like North Korea, to national security that faced its allies in the Indo-Pacific.

“I met with our allies from Australia, Japan and the Republic of Korea underscoring our commitment, and deepening our engagement, with our closest partners,” Biden said.

A White House summary of the meeting between the US and China leaders said Biden took issue with the “coercive and increasingly aggressive” actions toward Taiwan, which undermine peace in the region.

US President Joe Biden and China's President Xi Jinping meet on the sidelines of the G20 Summit. Picture: AFP

“I made it clear that we want to see cross-strait issues peacefully resolved, and so it never has to come to that,” Biden said a potential Taiwan invasion.

“I’m convinced that he understood exactly what I was saying; I understood what he was saying.”

“I’m convinced that he understood exactly what I was saying; I understood what he was saying.”

The US’s “One-China policy” recognises as the Chinese Communist Party as the legal government of China, while also not recognising China’s sovereignty over Taiwan.

The meeting comes amid China’s increasing aggression in the Taiwan straight, including military exercises in August seen as a rehearsal for a potential invasion. US officials believe China has been speeding up its timeline to take Taiwan.