Lee Steinhauer, author of The Art of The New Cold War, discusses on Varney & Co. whether the Chinese economy is threatening a downward spiral.
President Joe Biden said Sunday that the economic challenges facing China make a possible invasion of Taiwan less likely.
Biden told reporters at a news conference in Vietnam that China’s economic growth was slowing due to a combination of a weak global economy and unspecified Chinese government policies. As a result, Chinese leader Xi Jinping “has his hands full right now,” which Biden believes makes an invasion of Taiwan less likely.
“I don’t think this will cause China to invade Taiwan,” Biden said, referring to the economic challenges facing China. “On the contrary, it probably doesn’t have the same capacity as before.”
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President Joe Biden said Sunday he believes China’s economic challenges make the likelihood of an invasion of Taiwan less likely. ((Photo by George Frey/Getty Images) / Getty Images)
Taiwan is a democratic, self-governing island nation that the Chinese government considers a rogue province, although the Chinese Communist Party has never ruled Taiwan since it took control of the mainland in 1949 after a 22-year civil war.
Xi and other Chinese officials have repeatedly refused to rule out the use of force to bring about Taiwan’s “reunification” with the People’s Republic of China. Taiwan’s role as a leading manufacturer of high-quality semiconductors that power much of the global economy makes it an attractive destination for China.
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Xi Jinping and other Chinese leaders have repeatedly refused to rule out the use of force to force Taiwan’s unification with the mainland. (Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Biden said China’s economic situation was a “crisis,” citing problems with the country’s real estate sector and high youth unemployment. “One of the key economic tenets of his plan isn’t working at all right now,” Biden said of Xi. “I’m not happy about it, but it’s not working.”
The president said he had led the highest-level talks with the Chinese government during the G20 summit in India since he last spoke to Xi nearly 10 months ago at the G20 summit last year. Biden met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang, who took over as No. 2 in China’s government in March.
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US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo recently visited China to discuss economic relations between the two countries. (Photo by Andy Wong-Pool/Getty Images / Getty Images)
“My team, my staff are still meeting with the people of President Xi and his cabinet,” Biden said. “I met his number two in India today.”
August trade data showed China’s exports and imports narrowed their declines, suggesting possible stabilization amid the economic downturn.
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Li said China should meet its growth target of about 5% for 2023, although some analysts believe a worsening housing slump, weak consumer spending and slowing credit growth could hurt the Chinese economy.