Biden ‘concerned’ over China air zone

Vice President Biden has been thrust into the center of an escalating standoff with China that is testing him on the global stage ahead of a possible presidential run in 2016.

President Obama dispatched Biden to Asia, where he will deliver a strong warning to China for declaring an air defense zone over islands that are also claimed by U.S. ally Japan.

{mosads}“This is an opportunity for Vice President Biden to raise our concerns directly with policymakers in Beijing and to seek clarity regarding the Chinese intentions in making this move at this time,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said Monday. “We do not accept the legitimacy of China’s requirements.”

The mission has a political upside for the vice president, as it gives him a chance to show he’s presidential material in the pressure cooker of an international crisis.

Biden has long fashioned himself a foreign policy pro, and the former senator’s decades of experience in that arena was one of the main things Obama cited after choosing him as his running mate in 2008.

Read more from The Hill.