Beijing — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and senior Chinese officials on Friday, warning of the dangers of misunderstandings and miscalculations as the United States and China clashed over a number of controversial bilateral, regional and global issues. Blinken met Xi in Beijing after holding talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Public Security Minister Wang Xiaohong.
Talks between the two sides have intensified in recent months, although differences have widened.
“We are committed to maintaining and strengthening the lines of communication between us,” so that both sides can avoid “any misunderstandings, any misperceptions and any miscalculations,” Blinken said.
Mark Schiefelbein/Piscine/Reuters
Earlier, Blinken and Wang also stressed the importance of keeping lines of communication open while lamenting the persistent and growing divisions that threaten global security. These divisions were highlighted earlier this week when President Biden signed a massive foreign aid bill that contains several elements the Chinese view as problematic.
Their comments alluded to a long list of differences to be discussed, including Taiwan and the South China Sea, trade And human rightsChina support for Russia and production and export of synthetic opioid precursors.
“Overall, China-US relations are beginning to stabilize,” Wang told Blinken at the start of about five and a half hours of talks. “But at the same time, the negative factors in the relationship continue to grow and develop and the relationship faces all sorts of disruptions.”
“Should China and the United States continue in the right direction, toward stability, or return to a downward spiral?” He asked. “This is a major issue for our two countries and tests our sincerity and capabilities.”
“China’s legitimate development rights have been unreasonably suppressed and our core interests are facing challenges,” he said. “China’s concerns are consistent. We have always called for respecting each other’s core interests and urge the United States not to interfere in China’s internal affairs, not to hinder China’s development and not to step on China’s red lines regarding China’s sovereignty and security, and development interests.
Blinken responded by saying the Biden administration places great importance on dialogue between the United States and China, even on controversial issues. He stressed that some progress had been made over the past year, but suggested that negotiations would remain difficult.
“I look forward to these discussions being very clear, very direct on the areas where we have differences and on the position of the United States, and I am confident that you will do the same on behalf of China,” he said. Blinken told Wang.
“In our opinion, there is no substitute for face-to-face diplomacy to try to move forward, but also to make sure that we are as clear as possible on the areas in which we have differences, at least to avoid misunderstandings”, for avoid calculation errors,” he said.
The State Department later said Blinken and Wang had “in-depth, substantive and constructive discussions on areas of divergence as well as areas of cooperation” and made clear that Blinken stood firm in the face of U.S. concerns.
Blinken “emphasized that the United States will continue to defend our interests and values and those of our allies and partners, including on human rights and economic issues,” the Department of Defense spokesperson said. State, Matthew Miller, in a statement.
Blinken arrived in China on Wednesday and traveled to Shanghai shortly before Mr. Biden signed the $95 billion foreign aid plan It has several elements likely to anger Beijing, including $8 billion to counter China’s growing aggressiveness toward Taiwan and in the South China Sea. He also seeks to force TikTok’s China-based parent company to sell the social media platform.
China and the United States are the main players in the Indo-Pacific region. Washington is increasingly alarmed by Beijing’s growing aggressiveness in recent years toward Taiwan and its smaller Southeast Asian neighbors with whom it has major territorial and maritime disputes in the South China Sea.
China denounced US aid to Taiwan and immediately condemned the aid as a dangerous provocation. He also strongly opposes efforts to force the sale of TikTok.
The bill also provides $61 billion for Ukraine to defend against Russian invasion. The Biden administration has loudly complained that Chinese support for Russia’s military-industrial sector has allowed Moscow to circumvent Western sanctions and step up attacks on Ukraine.
U.S. officials said China-Russia ties would be a major topic of conversation during Blinken’s visit, and just before Friday’s meetings began, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced he would visit China in May.
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