China's Foreign Ministry on Wednesday criticized US President Joe Biden's comments equating Chinese leader Xi Jinping with "dictators" as an "open political provocation."

Biden said at a fundraising event in California on Tuesday that Xi was angry about an incident in February when a Chinese balloon — which Washington says was being used for espionage — flew over the United States and was subsequently shot down by American fighter jets.

His comments come just days after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken completed a visit to Beijing aimed at restoring lines of communication and preventing conflict between the two world powers.

“The reason Xi Jinping got so angry when I shot down that balloon with two boxcars full of spy equipment is he didn't know it was there,” Biden said.