Biden announces Pentagon task force on China, warns Xi on ‘assertive actions’

By Arul Louis New York, Feb 11 : US President Joe Biden has announced a Pentagon task force to chart Washington’s Beijing strategy and followed it up with a stern dialogue with his Chinese counterpart XI Jinping about the Asian giant’s “increasingly assertive actions” and served notice that he was committed to an open Indo-Pacific region, according to the White House.
During the phone call with Xi on Wednesday, Biden was also forthright on human rights issues in Hong Kong and Xinjiang and on Beijing’s trade practices, according to an account of their conversation from the White House.
In a sign of his recognition of the risks from Beijing’s growing power and assertiveness, Biden, while on a visit to the Pentagon, called for a national and international effort to “meet the China challenge and ensure the American people win the competition of the future”.
“We need to meet the growing challenges posed by China to keep the peace and defend our interests in the Indo-Pacific and globally,” he said.
At the Pentagon, the President also announced the formation of the new task force that will work with a sense of urgency on strategy so that “we can chart a strong path forward on China-related matters”.
In his speech at the Pentagon, Biden said that the task force on China will “look at our strategy and operational concepts, technology, and force posture, and so much more”.