Chinese President Xi Jinping told European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen that Washington was trying to incite Beijing to attack Taiwan, according to people familiar with the matter.
The Chinese leader also issued the warning to national officials in his own country, a source said.
Xi made the warning during a meeting with von der Leyen in April 2023, which was described to the Financial Times by several people. He said the United States was trying to trick China into invading Taiwan, but he wouldn't take the bait. Another person said he issued similar warnings to his managers.
The comments provide a window into Xi's thinking on Taiwan, the thorniest issue in U.S.-China relations.
Some Chinese academics and retired military officers have claimed that Washington is trying to provoke Beijing by supplying weapons to Taiwan and advocating other measures to draw China into a military confrontation.
Speaking at the Asia Society in January, Cui Tiankai, China's former ambassador to Washington, said China would not fall into any trap someone might set for us, in a veiled reference to the United States.
Xi's remark to von der Leyen is the first known instance of him vindicating a foreign leader. Xi also said a conflict with the United States would destroy many of China's achievements and undermine its goal of achieving great rejuvenation by 2049.
If Xi sincerely believes that the United States is actively seeking conflict with China over Taiwan, then concerns that Xi has created an information vacuum or is not getting advice from his subordinates are, of course, worryingly true, said Jude Blanchette, a China expert at CSIS, a think tank. -reservoir.
This revelation comes after rising tensions in the Taiwan Strait. China responded to the May inauguration of Lai Ching-te as Taiwan's new president with major military exercises around the island. Beijing has described Lai as a dangerous separatist.
Washington has an obligation to help Taiwan ensure its own defense under the Taiwan Relations Act. But the Biden administration has long emphasized that it does not support Taiwan's independence and opposes unilateral changes to the status quo.
Chinese concern about U.S. intentions has increased in recent years, while U.S. concerns about China's assertive military activity around Taiwan have increased.
A Chinese academic said Washington actively encouraged pro-independence forces in Taiwan and that the United States knew that if it crossed a red line by declaring independence, China would be forced to take military action.
Blanchette said one possible explanation for Xi's comment was that some subordinates were trying to steer him away from more aggressive policies.
Whatever the explanation for Xi's comments, it is clear that the decision-making environment and the information that feeds it are distorted, either by Xi's lieutenants or by his own autocratic behavior, Blanchette said.
Bonnie Glaser, a China expert at the German Marshall Fund, said the comment may have been part of China's attempt to distance Europe from the United States over the Taiwan issue, but it was also possible that Xi believed it. .
The Chinese embassy in Washington did not comment on Xi's remark, but said the United States was selling arms to Taiwan and supporting pro-independence separatist forces.
Von der Leyens' spokeswoman said she did not disclose details of the private meetings. The White House had no comment.
Additional reporting by Henry Foy in Brussels
