US Vice-President Joe Biden told Chinese President Xi Jinping that Washington will not recognise Beijing’s new air defence zone over disputed islands in the East China Sea and asked him to take steps to reduce tensions arisen out of the unilateral move.
In a five-and-half hour long meeting with President Xi, Biden had a “back and forth” conversation on the air defence identification zone (ADIZ) and a host of other bilateral issues. “They covered every single topic in the US-China relationship. The conversation was very much a back-and-forth. It reflected the casual candor that the two leaders have developed,” a US official said.
On the issue of the air defence zone, “the Vice-President laid out our position in detail,” the official said. “He indicated that we don’t recognise the zone, that we have deep concerns.” Biden told Xi that “We are looking to China to take steps to reduce tensions.” On his part, “President Xi was equally clear in laying out their view of the zone and of territorial disputes in the region,” the official said.
“Ultimately, President Xi took on board what Biden said,” the official said. The defence zone announced by China days ahead of Biden’s visit has become bone of contention with US, Japan and South Korea, who have refused to abide by the rule that all the airlines have to register their flight paths.