Xi’s Implicit Warning To Trump? China Tells Biden ‘Taiwan And…’ Are Four Red Lines US Mustn’t Cross

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned the United States on Saturday not to cross a "red line" in support for Taiwan, but told his counterpart Joe Biden that Beijing was willing to work with the incoming administration of Donald Trump.

Biden and Xi met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Peru, two months before Trump takes office and amid concerns of new trade wars and diplomatic upheaval.

China claims Taiwan as its own territory and has refused to rule out using force to seize it, while the United States is the self-ruled island's main security backer even though it does not recognise Taipei diplomatically.

Xi told Biden that the "Taiwan issue, democracy and human rights, pathways and systems, and development interests are China's four red lines that must not be challenged", according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

"These are the most important guardrails and safety net for China-US relations," CCTV reported Xi as saying.

"The separatist actions of 'Taiwan independence' are incompatible with peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait," he added.

Taiwan's foreign ministry said Sunday that "China's ongoing military provocations near Taiwan are the root cause of destroying regional peace and stability and the major threat to global economic prosperity".

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