U.S. Vice President Joe Biden began his two day trip to China by encouraging young people to "challenge the government," BBC News reported.
"Children in America are rewarded - not punished - for challenging the status quo. The only way you make something totally new is to break the mold of what was old," Biden said to students at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.
"From the beginning of our country, it's a constant stream of new immigrants, new cultures, new ideas, new religions, brand new people continuing to reinvigorate the spirit of America," he added.
The vice president offered some degree of praise for China's educational system. Results from a global exam showed American students still trailing behind many European and Asian countries. "Students in Shanghai, China's largest city, had the top scores in all subjects on that exam," The AP reported.
"Even though some countries' educational systems are better than America's - particularly in grade school - there is one thing that's stamped in the DNA of every American, whether they are naturalized citizens or natural-born. It's an inherent rejection of orthodoxy," said Biden.
Biden's visit comes just a few days after the U.S. and Japan's objection to "Beijing's recent insistence that pilots flying through airspace over a set of disputed islands file flight plans with China's government," The AP reported. Biden said on Tuesday that the U.S. was deeply concerned by China's actions in a visit to Tokyo.
Standing side by side in Tokyo with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Biden voiced strong opposition to China's new air defense zone above a set of disputed islands.
"This action has raised regional tensions and increased the risk of accidents and miscalculation," he said.
After meeting with Chinese President Xi Jingping, Biden will fly to Seoul, South Korea for the final leg of his trip, The AP also reported.
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