WASHINGTON – President Biden has warned that China is making advances in transportation that give it an advantage over the United States by making a request to Congress to approve an economic recovery package that includes infrastructure improvements.
“If we don’t move, they’ll eat our lunch. They have important new railway initiatives, ”said Biden, adding that China is also making rapid advances in electric vehicle technology.
The president spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday night on a call that Biden said lasted two hours. The two leaders, speaking for the first time since Biden took office, discussed a number of issues, including human rights, trade and security, according to the White House.
In May 2019 comments, Biden appeared to reject the idea that China posed a major competitive threat to the U.S.
“Is China going to have lunch? Come on, man, ”he said in Iowa, saying the country was facing internal problems on a much larger scale than in the United States. Biden added: “They are not bad people, people. But guess what? They are not a competition for us. ”