During CNN’s State of the Union coverage on Tuesday, CNN Senior Political Correspondent Abby Phillip said President Joe Biden’s speech largely omitted China, and stated that is due to the situation in Ukraine, where the White House doesn’t “want to antagonize China. They want China to help rein Putin in.”
After CNN Contributor Evan Osnos stated that Biden argues that “it’s not just authoritarianism in Russia. We’re dealing with a crescent, an arc of authoritarianism.” Phillip stated, “Although, interestingly, he did not mention China really tonight, which is surprising, given how important he views China in the big scheme of things, in terms of authoritarianism versus democracies.”
She continued, “And that has to do with Ukraine, too. I think the White House is treading very carefully when it comes to China. They don’t want to antagonize China. They want China to help rein Putin in.”
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