U.S. President Joe Biden said the United States is in "the strongest position in decades to compete with China" both economically and militarily.
Biden said during the annual State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress Tuesday that the United States is now "investing in industries that will define the future" that Beijing is "intent on dominating," as well as modernizing the U.S. military "to safeguard stability and deter aggression."
He told lawmakers he has made it clear to his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, that the United States seeks "competition, not conflict" with China, and will work with Beijing "where it can" on issues that will benefit the world.
But Biden said if China threatens U.S. sovereignty, "we will act to protect our country, …and we did" — a reference to the unmanned Chinese spy balloon that flew over the continental United States for several days before it was shot down last Saturday by a fighter jet over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of South Carolina.
Earlier Tuesday, a Pentagon spokesman said China has rejected a request from Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to speak with his Chinese counterpart since the balloon's downing.
