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Xi Jinping and Joe Biden held two hours of "candid and in-depth" talks on Thursday, in which the Chinese president warned his American counterpart not to "play with fire" in Taiwan, state media reported.

The virtual summit of more than two hours took place when Beijing and Washington are in an increasingly blatant conflict over the island that China considers part of its territory.

"Those who play with fire will end up getting burned

," Xi told Biden, according to the state news agency Xinhua, using the same expression he used in a conversation between the two in November.

"The position of the Chinese government and people on the Taiwan issue is consistent," Xi was quoted as saying by the agency.

"It is the firm will of more than 1.4 billion Chinese people to firmly safeguard China's sovereignty and territorial integrity," she added.

According to the White House, Biden told Xi that the United States "has not changed" its position on Taiwan

and "strongly opposes unilateral efforts to change the status quo or undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait."

Amid tensions that are hard to hide, the conversation was the fifth virtual summit between the two since Biden took office a year and a half ago.

Beijing and Washington were already at loggerheads over trade, and have now grown in disagreement between them over Taiwan.

The latest source of friction to date has been a possible trip by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan.

China considers the island as one of its historical provinces and claims its sovereignty.

It therefore opposes any initiative that gives the Taiwanese authorities international legitimacy and any official contact between Taiwan and other countries.

Although senior US officials visit Taiwan frequently, China considers the trip by Pelosi, one of the state's leading personalities, to be a major provocation.

Washington will have to "bear all the consequences" of this possible visit

, which Pelosi has not yet confirmed, Beijing warned on Wednesday.

General Mark Milley, chief of staff of the United States, told the press that if Pelosi asked for "military support", he would "do what is necessary" to ensure that it passes safely.

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  • Joe Biden

  • Taiwan

  • Xi Jinping