US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that he is not concerned about the possibility of an armed conflict with China.

During a press conference on the sidelines of the UN COP26 summit in Glasglow, Biden expressed "Am I worried about an armed conflict or something happening accidentally with China? No, I'm not." 

"Am I worried about an armed conflict or something happening accidentally with China? No, I'm not." 

Biden added that a virtual meeting will be held between him and Chinese President Xi Jinping, although the date has not yet been set.

The US President and Xi spoke in a phone call in September in order to discuss common interests and competition between the two nations, agreeing that they hold a responsibility to ensure that competition does not turn into conflict. 

"This is competition. It does not have to be conflict," Biden said at the summit. 

Biden: The US would defend Taiwan if China were to attack

Earlier, the US President said the United States would defend Taiwan if China were to attack.

China urged the United States to tread carefully on the topic of Taiwan after President Joe Biden told Beijing that Washington would defend the island against any "attacks" by China.

"China has no room for compromise on issues involving its core interests," Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.

Biden's statement clashes with the long-held US policy known as "strategic ambiguity," where Washington helps build Taiwan's defenses without explicitly promising to come to the island's help.