CREDIT: (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Eraldo Peres, File)
Joe Biden, Xi Jinping
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke for more than two hours on Thursday amid rising tensions between their two nations. Xi emphasized China’s claim over Taiwan, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said “those who play with fire will perish by it.” Relations between the two countries have been strained by talk of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s potential trip to the island, which has a democratic government. The call began at 8:33 a.m. and ended at 10:50 a.m. It’s the fifth talk of their presidencies and their first since March, shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. John Kirby, a spokesman for the National Security Council, told reporters on Wednesday that it’s important that “the lines of communication with President Xi remain open.”
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