US NSA: Ties with China can easily veer towards conflict if not managed

PTI

Washington, November 14

The US and China could easily veer towards a conflict if their “complex and competitive” relationship is not well managed, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has warned ahead of the much-anticipated summit between President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

Biden and Xi are scheduled to meet in San Francisco on Wednesday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leadership meeting in San Francisco. The two top leaders last met face-to-face at the G20 summit in Bali in November 2022.

Biden, 80, and Xi, 70, had already known each other for more than a decade before Biden became President in 2021. Sullivan on Monday said the US President had the opportunity to engage on how they effectively manage peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. The two sides are also expected to discuss China’s aggressive actions in the Indo-Pacific region. Sullivan said the most important thing was that “this is a complex and a competitive relationship that could easily veer into conflict or confrontation if it’s not well managed”.

“So, managing the relationship effectively is the single most important responsibility of the President and everyone who works for him on this file,” Sullivan told reporters at a news conference here.

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