Nominee to be top US diplomat calls China 'dangerous' adversary

Mr Marco Rubio, Donald Trump's nominee for secretary of state, said on Jan 15 that a "dangerous" China cheated its way to superpower status as he vowed to ramp up support to deter an invasion of Taiwan.

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WASHINGTON -

Mr Rubio laid out his world view to fellow senators at a confirmation hearing that took place just as Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire in their 15-month war, a long-sought goal of President Joe Biden's outgoing administration.

Mr Rubio, who is expected to secure confirmation easily, described China as "the most potent and dangerous near-peer adversary this nation has ever faced" and warned of drastic impact if the US does not act.

"If we stay on the road we're on right now, in less than 10 years, virtually everything that matters to us in life will depend on whether China will allow us to have it or not - everything from the blood pressure medicine we take to what movies we get to watch," he said.

He vowed to ramp up defenses of Taiwan, the self-governing democratic island claimed by Beijing, to prevent a "cataclysmic military intervention".

"We need to wrap our head around the fact that unless something dramatic changes, like an equilibrium (between China and Taiwan), where they conclude that the costs of intervening in Taiwan are too high, we're going to have to deal with this before the end of this decade," Mr Rubio said.