Biden calls China's Xi a dictator again, upsetting Beijing after high-stakes meeting

WOODSIDE, Calif. ― President Joe Biden doubled down Wednesday on labeling Chinese President Xi Jinping a dictator, prompting a quick rebuke from Beijing after the two leaders' high-stakes meeting.

"Well, look, he is," Biden said at the end of a press conference when asked whether he stands by remarks he made at a campaign fundraiser in June when he referred to Xi as a "dictator."

"I mean, he’s a dictator in the sense that he is a guy who runs a country that is a communist country that is based on a form of government totally different than ours," Biden said. "Anyway, we made progress."

Biden touted progress on fighting fentanyl and and renewing communication between the two global powers after meeting face-to-face with Xi for more than four hours during a carefully choreographed summit of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.

Mao Ning, a spokeswoman for China's foreign ministry said China "strongly opposes" the dictator description, without mentioning Biden by name, according to Reuters. "This statement is extremely wrong and irresponsible political manipulation," she said.

"It should be pointed out that there will always be some people with ulterior motives who attempt to incite and damage U.S.-China relations, they are doomed to fail," Mao said.

Mao would not specify the identity of "some people," Reuters reported.

China had already condemned Biden's earlier assessment in June that Xi is a dictator. The disagreement underscores the deep tensions in U.S.-China relations despite any headway made at the meeting.

Biden and Xi have known each other for more than a decade. They spent time together in China in 2011, when they were vice presidents of their respective nations, and in Washington the next year.

"I value our conversation because I think it's paramount that you and I understand each other clearly, leader to leader, with no misconceptions or miscommunication," Biden said Wednesday, sitting across from Xi as they kicked off their meeting. Biden said the U.S. does not want the economic competition between the nations to "veer into conflict."

Reach Joey Garrison on X, formerly known as Twitter @joeygarrison.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden calls Xi a dictator, upsetting China after San Francisco summit