Blinken’s visit, during which he met with Xi, was aimed at easing tensions between the two superpowers but appeared not to have achieved any solid results.
Biden, at the fundraiser today, said that Xi was embarrassed over the recent tensions surrounding a suspected Chinese spy balloon that had been shot down by the Air Force over the East Coast.
“That’s a great embarrassment for dictators. When they didn’t know what happened,” Biden said.
Mao reiterated China’s contention that the balloon was intended for meteorological research and had been blown off-course accidentally.
“The US should have handled it in a calm and professional manner,” she said.
”However, the US distorted facts and used forces to hype up the incident, fully revealing its nature of bullying and hegemony.”
More to come.
- AP
