US and China silent on air defence zone after Biden tells Xi of 'deep concerns'

US Vice-President Joe Biden expressed his country's misgivings about China's air defence identification zone (ADIZ) in lengthy talks with President Xi Jinping in Beijing yesterday.

A senior US official said: "The vice-president laid out our position in detail. He indicated that we don't recognise the zone, that we have deep concerns."

He added that Biden told Xi that "we are looking to China to take steps to reduce tensions".

"President Xi was equally clear in laying out their view of the zone and of territorial disputes in the region," the official said. "Ultimately, President Xi took on board what the vice-president said. It's up to China, and we'll see how things will unfold in the coming days and weeks."

Xi called for closer co-operation and dialogue with America, while Biden said the bilateral relationship had to be built on trust.

The declaration late last month of the zone over the East China Sea drew criticism from the US and China's Asian neighbours. It includes the airspace above disputed islands known as the Diaoyus in Chinese and the Senkakus in Japanese.

A Xinhua report said Xi reiterated China's view on the zone.