Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has told the US that recent improvements in relations between the two countries are at risk due to “turmoil” and that relations could slip back into a “downward spiral” leading to conflict, conflict and even conflict. I was warned that there would be.
Wang was speaking at the beginning of a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Beijing, amid new tensions in relations between the superpowers.
Blinken’s three-day visit to China comes five months after a highly successful summit between U.S. and Chinese leaders Joe Biden and Xi Jinping, which followed a easing of tensions over Taiwan and an agreement between the two countries’ militaries. Contact between the two countries has been resumed. Bilateral cooperation in counter-drug efforts.
But the United States is now threatening sanctions against Chinese companies supplying Russia’s defense industry and considering tariffs in the face of what Washington claims is China’s excess manufacturing capacity. There is. The Biden administration has also tightened export controls for advanced computer chips.
As Mr. Blinken was en route to China, Congress passed a bill that would ban social media platform TikTok in the United States within a year and provide billions of dollars in aid if Chinese parent company ByteDance does not sell its stake. For the Indo-Pacific, it will primarily benefit Taiwan.
At the beginning of a six-hour series of talks between U.S. and Chinese delegations scheduled for the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing, Wang suggested that relations between the two countries are at a turning point. He said things are “starting to stabilize” with increased dialogue and cooperation since the November summit between Biden and Xi in San Francisco.
“This will be welcomed by the people of our two countries and the international community,” Wang said through an official interpreter. “But at the same time, the negative factors in the relationship are still increasing and building, and the relationship is facing all kinds of turmoil.”
“China’s legitimate development rights are being unduly suppressed, and our core interests are facing difficulties,” he said. “Should China and the United States stick to the right path forward toward stability, or should they return to a downward spiral?”
“This is a serious issue for both countries, testing our integrity and capabilities,” Wang added, urging the US to “tread red lines that China should not cross regarding China’s sovereignty, security and development interests.” “Don’t do that,” he warned.
“Should the two countries lead international cooperation on global issues, achieving win-win for all, or fall into competition, conflict, or even conflict, with loss-loss for all?” Is there?” Mr. Wang asked. “The international community is waiting for our answers.”
In response, Blinken said he welcomed the opportunity to meet face-to-face “to avoid misunderstandings and avoid miscalculations.”
“Given the impact our relationship has around the world, this is our shared responsibility, not just to our own people, but to people around the world,” Blinken said.
“It is important that we demonstrate that we are responsible stewards of the relationship that is most important to both of us in the world.”
Mr. Blinken is also scheduled to meet with Mr. Xi on Friday, but Beijing typically does not approve meetings until the last minute.
U.S. officials say the Taiwan Strait has been relatively calm since the Biden-Xi talks, although there was a period of heightened tensions when Chinese warships and planes regularly approached Taiwan. At the same time, however, there is growing friction in the South China Sea between China and its neighbors, particularly the Philippines, a US ally, which claims sovereignty over much of the sea.
One of the main topics of the Beijing talks is counter-drug cooperation. At the November summit, China announced several steps to limit the supply of chemical precursors and equipment used by traffickers to make the synthetic opioid fentanyl, the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18 to 49. Measures were taken. But there are concerns in Washington about what those measures would look like. What the Chinese government has introduced is only a formality and has not yet had a significant effect.
Blinken, who is in Beijing with Todd Robinson, assistant secretary of state for international narcotics and law enforcement affairs, has called for more consistent police action against Chinese suppliers.
The Secretary of State also announced that Chinese companies will soon face sanctions from the United States and its European allies for selling weapons parts and military equipment to Russia’s military industry, which is rebuilding and modernizing to support President Vladimir Putin’s efforts. I came to convey the message that there is a possibility of receiving it. Conquer Ukraine. China rejects calls to curb these exports, calling them foreign interference in trade relations between China and its close strategic partner.
