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In the annual speech to assembled lawmakers, many of whom have pressed for a hard line on China, Biden called for US investment in the military, technology and alliances to take on the country widely viewed as the chief US competitor.
"I'm committed to work with China where it can advance American interests and benefit the world," Biden said.
"But make no mistake about it -- as we made clear last week, if China threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country. And we did," he said to applause.
Biden said that "winning the competition" with China should unite Americans.
"I will make no apologies that we are investing to make America stronger -- investing in American innovation, in industries that will define the future that China intends to be dominating."
But Biden steered clear of hawkish language as he mentioned by name his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, whom he met at length in November in Indonesia.
Biden said he told Xi that "we seek competition, not conflict."
China was one of the few foreign policy issues mentioned by Biden in a more than one-hour speech that comes as he prepares for a likely run for a second term.
He also promised long-term support for Ukraine but made no mention of Iran, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, North Korea or this week's devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria.
- Pentagon says China rejected talks -
A US fighter jet on Saturday shot down what the Pentagon called a Chinese surveillance balloon after it crossed into the Atlantic Ocean, with the military saying it waited until a point when the debris could not hurt people on the ground.
The episode led US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to postpone a visit to Beijing aimed at reducing tensions as he accused China of violating US sovereignty.
Blinken said that he sought to maintain communication with China. But at the Pentagon, a spokesman said that China rebuffed a request to speak.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin requested a secure call with his Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe immediately after the shootdown, Brigadier General Pat Ryder said.
"Unfortunately, the PRC has declined our request. Our commitment to open lines of communication will continue," Ryder said, referring to the People's Republic of China.
China says the balloon was an errant weather observation aircraft with no military purpose. But Washington has described it as a sophisticated high-altitude spying vehicle which reportedly traversed over several top-secret military sites.
Austin and Wei met in Cambodia in November as Washington and Beijing sought to lower the temperature after a visit to Taiwan by then-speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi that enraged China.
General Glen VanHerck, head of the US Northern Command, said a naval ship would map the debris field left by the balloon, which is expected to measure about 1,500 by 1,500 meters (yards) in the Atlantic.
The balloon itself was up to 200 feet (60 meters) tall and carried a payload weighing several thousand pounds that was roughly the size of a regional jet aircraft, he said.
VanHerck said the balloon debris would be carefully studied.
"I don't know where the debris is going to go for a final analysis, but I will tell you that certainly the intel community along with the law enforcement community that works this under counterintelligence will take a good look at it," he said.
China refused call with Pentagon chief on day of balloon downing: US
Washington (AFP) Feb 7, 2023 -
Beijing rejected a request for a secure call between Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin and his counterpart on the day an American warplane shot down a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon, a US Department of Defense spokesman said Tuesday.
"On Saturday, 4 February, immediately after taking action to down the PRC balloon, the DOD submitted a request for a secure call between Secretary Austin and PRC Minister of National Defense Wei Fenghe," Brigadier General Pat Ryder said in a statement, referring to the People's Republic of China.
"Unfortunately, the PRC has declined our request. Our commitment to open lines of communication will continue," Ryder added.
China says the balloon was an errant weather observation aircraft with no military purpose, but Washington has described it as a sophisticated high-altitude spying vehicle.
After slowly traversing the middle of the United States, reportedly over several top secret military sites, the balloon headed out over the east coast, where a fighter plane shot down it down on Saturday.
Austin and Wei met in Cambodia last November as Washington and Beijing sought to lower the temperature after a visit by then-speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi that enraged China.
But the balloon incident has heightened tensions, and led US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to scrap a rare trip to Beijing.
On Monday, President Joe Biden defended the decision to wait until the balloon had crossed the country to down it, saying the Defense Department concluded that it was best to do so over water.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the same day that measures were taken to ensure the balloon's instruments were "mitigated" in their ability to spy during the flyover, while "at the same time increasing and improving our ability to collect intelligence and information from it."
General Glen VanHerck, head of the US Northern Command, said a naval ship would map the debris field left by the balloon, which is expected to measure about 1,500 by 1,500 meters (yards) in the Atlantic.
The balloon itself was up to 200 feet (60 meters) tall and carried a payload weighing several thousand pounds that was roughly the size of a regional jet aircraft, he said.
VanHerck said the balloon debris would be carefully studied.
"I don't know where the debris is going to go for a final analysis, but I will tell you that certainly the intel community along with the law enforcement community that works this under counterintelligence will take a good look at it," he said.
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