Author John Moody, who explores the beginnings of the COVID-19 pandemic in China through his new book, "Of Course They Knew. Of Course They…," tells Newsmax that Chinese President Xi Jinping is not "protecting peace" through the country's recent actions concerning Taiwan. 

"If that's protecting peace, I'd hate to see what he does when he's angry," Moody said on Newsmax's "The Count." "He has said publicly that by the year 2050, Taiwan will be reunited with China. Now that's as straightforward a threat to the Taiwanese and indirectly to the United States of America as he can make."

Moody's book, which is a work of fiction that is being praised as being "as close to the reality every reader shared, [so] it might as well be a headline. If you still believe the headlines," is a thriller based on "the beginnings and worldwide growth of the deadly coronavirus pandemic," explains an Amazon preview.

"Where was the virus created, and by whom?" the preview says. "Did anyone try to prevent it? Or was unleashing this monstrous disease on the entire planet the objective all along?"

Moody, the former executive editor and executive vice president of Fox News, told Newsmax Saturday that Xi is strengthening his position through the overflights into Taiwan's territory and by hardening three naval bases in Fujian Province, which is in China but "directly across the street from Taiwan."

"By hardening, what they mean is making them assault capable, so it's a pretty clear message that Xi is sending," Moody told Newsmax. "I think that everybody knows what he intends to do. It's a question of when will he actually try to do it? And what will the world's response be now?"

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden, while speaking in Connecticut last week, touted his close relationship with Xi, noting that both as vice president and now, he has spent "more time" with the Chinese president than "any other world leader."

"So now it's a conversation between an hour-and-a-half and two-and-a-half hours; not a joke," Biden said."

Moody said that he agrees that Biden should know that what is going on with China is not a joke.

"He didn't mean it that way, but he should know this is not a joke," said Moody. "Xi Jinping has no intention of bowing to the United States or coming to any agreement."

He added that Xi sees himself as the "greatest Chinese leader since [Chairman] Mao Zedong," and he is imposing a philosophy of life called socialism, but with Chinese characteristics.

"It's his baby," said Moody. "It is his idea, and he's going to see it through whether it takes the war, whether it takes threats, whether it takes intimidation or whether it takes just a weak president in the United States."

Further, the United States must understand that China is "not our friend," said Moody.

"They cannot be reasoned with," he commented. "They're not going to be negotiated into democracy. They're not going to do what we want them to do. They are our enemy and people who don't understand that don't understand the world."

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