Before his trip to China, which was postponed due to diplomatic tensions, US Secretary of State Blinken is open. Signs of rapprochement come from US President Biden, who holds out the prospect of a meeting with President Xi.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has announced that he will speak “directly and openly” about “very real concerns” in the United States during his visit to China on Sunday. A series of meetings with senior Chinese government officials are planned in Beijing, Blinken said.
The aim is to establish open communication so that both countries can shape their relationships responsibly. Relations between the US and China are considered tense due to several points of contention. The United States wanted to ensure that “the competition we have with China” does not “turn into conflict” because of avoidable misunderstandings, Blinken told the press in Washington on Friday.
The US Secretary of State before his departure for China.
His trip to Beijing grew out of a meeting between President Joe Biden and China’s head of state Xi Jinping in Bali last year. The talks in Beijing were originally planned for February. However, Blinken canceled the trip at short notice because of a suspected Chinese spy balloon over the United States. Biden downplayed that incident on Saturday: He doesn’t think the leadership in Beijing knew where the balloon was or how it was outfitted. “I think it was more embarrassing than intended.”
Details of the trip unclear
It is Blinken’s first trip to the People’s Republic as US chief diplomat – and the first visit by a US Secretary of State to China in five years. A two-day stay is planned. Details are not known. As the Reuters news agency reports with reference to government circles, Blinken is also supposed to meet his counterpart Qin Gang. A meeting with President Xi Jinping is also possible.
mutual threats
Before Blinken’s arrival in Beijing, US President Biden promised a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. “I hope to meet with Xi again in the coming months and talk about legitimate differences that we have – but also about areas where we can get along,” Biden said on a trip to Philadelphia, State Pennsylvania.
China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, Beijing’s threats against the democratic island republic of Taiwan and the ongoing trade dispute between the two countries are causing contention. The US government sees China as the greatest geopolitical challenge. China, in turn, accuses the United States of hegemonic ambitions.