Tom Cotton calls for 'firmer action' against China amid President Biden's trip to Asia

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Sen. Cotton argues Biden's Asia trip came 'too late'

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., calls for 'firmer action against China as President Biden visits Asia.

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., called for "firmer action" against China on Sunday as President Biden visits Asia.

Speaking during an interview with "Sunday Morning Futures," Cotton argued that it's "important" for President Biden to "visit our allies in the Western Pacific," but that his trip came "too late" given China "is the number one threat we face."

When asked what he believes Biden was able to accomplish on his trip to Asia thus far, Cotton responded, "Unfortunately, I haven't seen many accomplishments yet." 

"I wish President Biden had gone there early in his tenure [and had] not spent so much time in Europe, not made his very first big, glitzy international summit with Vladimir Putin last summer, for that matter," he added. "It's always important to talk to our allies and to visit with them, but what Xi Jinping and Chinese communists watch, are actions and, unfortunately, Joe Biden's actions right now just are not backing up any words."

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Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., called for "firmer action" against China on Sunday as President Biden visits Asia.  (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images  | Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Cotton, who serves on the Intelligence Committee and the Armed Services Committee, continued to argue that "China is still closing the gap with us militarily, they're gaining diplomatic grounds by opening potential port access in Western Pacific states where Joe Biden and his administration have been caught asleep at the switch, and they're still stealing our intellectual property and not living up to their trade obligations." 

"If we want to get the upper hand on China, we need to take firmer action, not simply talk tough," Cotton stressed. 

A White House spokesperson recently described the Biden visit as showing the administration’s "rock-solid commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific and to U.S. treaty alliances with the Republic of Korea and Japan." Biden began his trip in South Korea on Friday and will end in Japan this week. 

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Fox News’ Mitch Shin and The Associated Press contributed to this report.