Foot-shooting frenzy: US keeps stoking the flames of war with China (video)

Call it what you will: Shooting yourself in the foot, scoring an own goal, or simply provoking a bear in a cage with a big stick, the United States continues to stoke the flames of war with China.

A day after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, in a bid to ease tensions between the world’s two biggest economic powerhouses, US President Joe Biden aggravates matters by calling Xi a “dictator.”

The 80 year old US president was speaking about the controversial “balloongate” incident at a charity event in the Bay Area of California last night.

Biden claimed Xi was embarrassed over the alleged Chinese spy balloon that had been blown off course over the US.

“The reason why Xi Jinping got very upset, in terms of when I shot that balloon down with two box cars full of spy equipment in it, was he didn’t know it was there. That’s a great embarrassment for dictators. When they didn’t know what happened.”

What the Chinese president makes of his US counterpart’s crass comments has not been reported but you can guess he won’t be pleased just as progress has been made.

It appears that any step forward in progress between both nations is followed by two to the side and two backwards.

Blinken is the first high-ranking US diplomat to visit Beijing in almost five years.

The 61 year old diplomat announced after the meetings, with his Chinese counterparts Wang Yi and Qin Gang and President Xi, that there are still major differences between the two nations but acknowledged they managed to find some common ground after talks on trade, human rights, and the old political football of Taiwan.

The US and Western nations conveniently overlook their own business dealings predicated on the notion that Taiwan is part of China. However, in the past decade, the US has escalated tensions, falsely claiming that Beijing is on the brink of invading Taipei.

This scaremongering and warmongering by the US have instilled unease in neighbouring countries. A survey conducted by the Eurasia Group Foundation reveals that over 90% of respondents in South Korea, the Philippines, and Singapore express deep concerns about a potential clash between China and the US. Nearly half of those surveyed consider regional tensions as their country’s most pressing challenge.

Recent developments highlight this anxiety. The Philippines allowed the US to expand its military presence in the archipelago, while Tokyo reportedly prepares military aid for Manila—a move that could mark Japan’s return to Philippine shores since World War Two.

In the Pacific Islands, where both the US and China are vying for strategic influence, concerns are also mounting. In May, Washington signed a new security pact with Papua New Guinea in response to Beijing’s similar pact with the Solomon Islands.

The region remains particularly apprehensive about a potential military clash over Taiwan, a self-governed island that China claims as its own. With increased military deployments in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait, the risk of miscalculation looms larger than ever.

For countries in the Asia-Pacific, this week’s meeting between China and the US offers a glimmer of hope. They eagerly anticipate any progress that can be achieved.

John Delury, Professor of Chinese Studies at Seoul’s Yonsei University, welcomed the talks.

“Everyone is learning to live with China-US rivalry, but no one wants to choose between them. There will be some relief to see these two countries acting like grown-ups.

“This visit doesn’t guarantee anything, but it at least shows the US and China trying to defuse tensions and maintain dialogue, which is a good look in this part of the world.”

Professor Delury is right of course. If only Biden listened, stopped shooting himself in the foot, scored a goal in the right end, and discards the stick he pokes the bear with then the threat of war on his watch will go away.