Newly announced Democratic Presidential Candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took to Twitter to attack President Joe Biden for Biden's recent handling of relations with China after Biden referred to Chinese leader Xi Jinping as a "dictator."

According to the Associated Press, Biden also made comments that China is an economically troubled nation, which drew sharp criticism from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), with spokesperson Mao Ning shooting down Biden's claims shortly afterward. Following the comments, both nations talked about smoothing out problems caused by the recent visit of Secretary of State Blinken to Beijing, aimed at thawing the historically frozen ties.

According to AP News, however, Biden, at a fundraiser in California, referred to the two-week overflight of what the U.S. says was a Chinese spy balloon, calling the incident an "embarrassment for dictators," like Xi. China, however, has said it was a weather balloon, and Mao called Biden's comments “blatant political provocation."  

Now, Biden foes like Kennedy are taking shots.

"It’s Diplomacy 101 that a President doesn’t send his senior diplomat to speak to a foreign leader, then insult that leader the next day," Kennedy Jr. wrote June 23 on Twitter. "President Biden seems to be surrounded by bellicose advisers who lack executive function." 

The U.S. is urging China to facilitate direct dialogues between Biden, Xi, and other high-ranking leaders, with an aim to lessen economic strains and prevent future aggression.

According to AP, Biden and Blinken have made clear the administration "will continue to responsibly manage this relationship, maintain open lines of communication with the PRC,” Vedant Patel, a State Department spokesman, told reporters.

Kennedy announced his candidacy in April. The son of the former Senator and Attorney General, and the nephew of President John F. Kennedy, Kennedy Jr. is a a lawyer, anti-vaccination and environmental activist, having worked on several environmental cases.