‘Well Look, He Is!’ Biden Asked Whether He Still Refers to Xi as a ‘Dictator’ Following Meeting

President Joe Biden was asked on Wednesday whether he would continue to refer to Xi Jinping as a “dictator” following his meeting with the Chinese leader, to which Biden responded, “Well look, he is!”

During a press conference, which took place following Biden’s bilateral meeting with Xi in Woodside, California, a reporter asked Biden, “Mr. President, after today, would you still refer to President Xi as a dictator? This is a term that you used earlier this year.”

Biden responded, “Well look, he is! I mean, he’s a dictator in the sense that he is a guy who runs a country that is a communist country based on a form of government totally different than ours,” before walking out of the room.

In June, the Chinese government condemned Biden’s “irresponsible” remarks, calling them “an open political provocation,” after Biden referred to Xi as a “dictator.”

During his meeting with Xi on Wednesday, however, Biden told the Chinese president that it was “a great honor and a pleasure” to host him in the United States.

“Mr. President, we’ve known each other for a long time. We haven’t always agreed, which was not a surprise to anyone, but our meetings have always been candid, straightforward, and useful,” said Biden during the meeting:

I’ve never doubted what you’ve told me in terms of your candid nature in which you speak.

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.

We have to ensure that competition does not veer into conflict. And we also have to manage it responsibly — that competition.

President Xi, meanwhile, replied:

China-U.S. relationship has never been smooth sailing over the past 50 years and more, and it always faces problems of one kind or another. Yet, it has kept moving forward amid twists and turns.

For two large countries like China and the United States, turning their back on each other is not an option. It is unrealistic for one side to remodel the other, and conflict and confrontation has unbearable consequences for both sides.

I am still of the view that major-country competition is not the prevailing trend of current times and cannot solve the problems facing China and the United States or the world at large. Planet Earth is big enough for the two countries to succeed, and one country’s success is an opportunity for the other.

It is an objective fact that China and the United States are different in history, culture, social system, and development path. However, as long as they respect each other, coexist in peace, and pursue win-win cooperation, they will be fully capable of rising above differences and find the right way for the two major countries to get along with each other.

I firmly believe in the promising future of the bilateral relationship.

Watch above via MSNBC.