Marco Rubio on China: China wants to become the most powerful country in the world, at our expense. But we are Americans and we won’t allow that.

At the same time, we are two of the world’s top economies; we probably also have two of the world’s top armies, though our army is ahead of theirs. It is important that the two great powers of the world have a relationship with each other, talk, and prevent conflict—otherwise things could spiral into disaster.

The foundation of this relationship is mutual respect between Trump and China’s president. The fact that the two presidents can talk with each other is extremely vital. To be honest, having no direct communication with China is almost irresponsible. We want stability in our relationship.