NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
PONTE VEDRA, Fla. — The top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee is calling for a secret briefing on last week’s call between President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, saying the panel needs to understand what consequences the Biden administration should present to Beijing, if they do decide to support Russia in its invasion of Ukraine.
During an interview with Fox News at the House Republican Issues Conference on Thursday, R-Ohio Mike Turner said understanding what transpired on President Biden’s call with Chinese President Xi Jinping was “certainly relevant.”
BIDEN WARNS XI OF ‘CONSEQUENCES’ IF CHINA BACKS RUSSIA, WHITE HOUSE SAYS
“Our committee has not been informed of this and this is certainly relevant for our committee to understand what the President set out to China and what President Xi’s responses were if China were to provide military support to Russia,” Turner told Fox News .
“There should be absolute consequences for China,” Turner said. “China has stated that it does not want a conflict with the Ukrainians, but arming Russia would persuade them to enter that conflict.”
Turner said that members of the Intelligence Committee “have no transcript of the call” and “have no information as to what even were the elements of what Biden intended to say, what the consequences for China would be.”
“These are very important details that we need to update,” Turner said.
Turner formally requested a briefing from White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Thursday, saying the call contained “critical information relevant to the future of US-China relations and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.”
Turner, in a dig at Biden, said his administration had “a record of weakness.”
Leaders Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, left, and Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., are seen during the House Select Intelligence Committee hearing entitled Worldwide Threats in the Rayburn Building Tuesday, March 8, 2022 . (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
“I’m certainly very concerned that he may have shown weakness again towards China, as he did towards Russia,” Turner said. “And that can lead to a bigger escalation.”
Biden spoke to Xi in a secure video call for almost two hours last Friday.
The White House said Biden “presented the views of the United States and our allies and partners on this crisis.”
“President Biden detailed our efforts to prevent and respond to the invasion, including by imposing costs on Russia,” the White House said.
“The President has underlined his support for a diplomatic solution to the crisis,” the White House added. “The two leaders also agreed on the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to manage competition between our two countries.”
GOP REP. SCOTT PERRY SAYS ‘WEAKNESS IS PROVOCATIVE’, WARNS BIDEN’S FOREIGN POLICY ‘ENCOURAGES’ OPPOSERS
Meanwhile, the White House said Biden “reiterated that US policy toward Taiwan has not changed and stressed that the United States remains opposed to unilateral changes to the status quo.”
“The two leaders have tasked their teams to follow up today’s conversation during the critical period ahead,” the White House said.
Shortly after the meeting concluded, China’s foreign ministry said Xi underscored the “serious challenges” around the globe.
“The Ukraine crisis is something we don’t want to see,” China’s foreign ministry reported, Xi said. “Relevant events show once again that relations between states cannot go as far as confrontation. Conflicts and confrontations are in nobody’s interest. Peace and security are the most valuable treasures of the international community.”
STEFANIK WARNS RUSSIA AND CHINA TO ‘STRENGTHEN’ THEIR ‘AUTHORITARY ALLIANCE’
“As a permanent member of the UN Security Council and the world’s two largest economies, we must not only set the development of China-US relations on the right track, but also assume our due international responsibilities and work for peace and tranquility in the world insert. ‘ the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
US intelligence officials said Russia sought military and economic aid from China after its invasion of Ukraine. In a bid to protect intelligence sources, US officials were reluctant to provide details about what type of aid it was.
A senior government official said this week the Biden administration has “deep concerns” about China’s “alignment” with Russia amid Moscow’s multi-front war with Ukraine.
The official shared those concerns after Sullivan met with his Chinese counterpart, China Foreign Affairs Commission director Yang Jiechi, last Monday in Rome, Italy.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
If Republicans take control of the House after November’s midterm elections, Turner vowed to bring the House Intelligence Committee’s focus back to what it “intends” to be.
“This committee is meant to focus on national security, and that’s what we’re going to focus on,” Turner said.
The committee has been chaired by Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif, since 2019.
“Our efforts will be to align information with policy-making and decision-making,” Turner said. “In addition to national security, our goal will be to preserve the information we receive as notices to Congress and ensure that it is made available to the appropriate committees for decision-making, for legislation and for funding of the appropriate programs and.” Initiatives to make our country safe.”