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Biden's Taiwan comment hangs over summit with leaders of Japan, India and Australia on final day of Asia trip

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Tokyo (CNN)As he concludes his debut tour of Asia, President Joe Biden is using Russia's invasion of Ukraine to send an unmistakable message to China: a similar breach of international order would generate a fierce US response.

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Speaking to a high-level summit here of Indo-Pacific leaders, Biden underscored the grave consequences of a war that continues to grind forward, despite withering sanctions from a mostly-united West. The message, delivered in a region watching closely for signals of how the US may respond to aggression from China, was one of resolve.

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"We're navigating a dark hour in our shared history," Biden said as he sat facing the leaders of India, Australia, and Japan.

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Biden warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin is "trying to extinguish a culture," pointing to Russia's targeting of Ukrainian schools, churches, and museums. And he said the conflict had touched the entire world. "This is more than just a European issue," he said. "It's a global issue."

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The war in Ukraine has served as an uneasy backdrop to Biden's trip in Asia. The conflict has consumed his time and attention, even as he works to reaffirm his goal of reorienting US foreign policy toward the Pacific. close dialog

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At the same time, Biden is hopeful the US-led response to the war -- which has included partners like Japan and South Korea, which he visited this week -- and Russia's stumbles on the battlefield will be viewed as a cautionary tale in Beijing.

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On Monday, Biden offered his most explicit warning to China, saying the US would be willing to respond militarily if the country invades the self-governing island of Taiwan. Biden's statement loomed over his final day in Tokyo, where he was meeting with the leaders of Japan, India and Australia as part of a revitalized Quad Leaders' Summit.

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A day later, Biden told reporters the US policy of "strategic ambiguity" had not changed. But he did not offer any qualifications on his earlier statement, saying only the US stance remains the same.

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"The policy has not changed at all and I stated that when I made my statement," Biden said at an event with Quad leaders.

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The comment, which was quickly walked back by a White House aide, sent a shock wave through both Washington and Beijing as Chinese government spokespeople issued sharp warnings over Biden's rhetoric, and the President's top military officials were forced to spend most of Monday attempting to explain the President's apparent disregard of American strategy toward Taiwan.

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Beijing has also criticized the Quad grouping as an "Indo-Pacific NATO," accusing it of "trumpeting the Cold War mentality" and "stoking geopolitical rivalry."

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Ahead of Tuesday's talks, a senior US administration official stressed the grouping is not a formal alliance bloc, without a central secretariat or headquarters.