Washington: United States President Joe Biden was caught on a hot mic telling leaders of the Quad nations — India, Australia, Japan — that China was testing them. The remarks underscore the threat of Beijing over territorial claims in the South China Sea.
Biden's remark came during the Quad Leaders' Summit on Saturday, which was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
“China continues to behave aggressively, testing us all across the region, and it’s true in the South China Sea, the East China Sea, South China, South Asia and the Taiwan Straits,” Biden was heard in what were supposed to be behind-closed-doors remarks to the Quad grouping of four countries.
Biden said that while Chinese president Xi Jinping was focusing on “domestic economic challenges”, he was also “looking to buy himself some diplomatic space, in my view, to aggressively pursue China’s interest”.
But he insisted that recent “intense efforts” by Washington to reduce tensions, including a call with Xi in April, were helping to prevent conflict.
Later a senior administration official tried to downplay the error.
“I don't think I have much to elaborate on that. It's consistent with what has been said before, and I don't think it'll be much of a surprise that our inside voice matches our outside voice," the official said.
"I think it's not surprising that China would have been on the agenda. It's an Indo-Pacific convening. This is an Indo-Pacific partnership. China is a major country in the Indo-Pacific. But I think it's also fair to say that there were a number of other topics on the agenda,” said the official.
QUAD Concerned Over South China Sea
In their joint statement after the summit, the four leaders made no direct mention of China, even as they expressed concern about tensions on its borders. “We are seriously concerned about the situation in the East and South China Seas,” their declaration said.
The statement read, "…We are seriously concerned about the situation in the East and South China Seas. We continue to express our serious concern about the militarization of disputed features, and coercive and intimidating maneuvers in the South China Sea."
It added, "We condemn the dangerous use of coast guard and maritime militia vessels, including increasing use of dangerous maneuvers. We also oppose efforts to disrupt other countries’ offshore resource exploitation activities. We reaffirm that maritime disputes must be resolved peacefully and in accordance with international law, as reflected in UNCLOS…."
The leaders asserted that they are of strong conviction that international law, including respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, along with the maintenance of peace, safety, security, and stability in the maritime domain, should be kept at the topmost priority.
The Quad leaders added that they recommit to working in partnership with Pacific island countries to achieve shared aspirations and address shared challenges.
The Quad, formally known as the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, was initially launched in 2007 but it quickly dissolved amid protests from China. The alliance was revived in 2017, and when Biden took office in 2021, he pushed to elevate it as the US sought to curb China’s influence in the Asia Pacific.
The group held its first leaders’ summit virtually in 2021, and a year later, Biden hosted the Australian, Indian and Japanese heads of state at the White House.