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Top diplomats from the US and China have been conducting the first “constructive” talks in months

#Top #diplomats #China #conducting #constructive #talks #months

The United States and China held “constructive” talks on Saturday, Washington’s top diplomat said after an unusually long meeting aimed at preventing bilateral tensions from spiraling out of control.

Foreign Minister Antony Blinken and Foreign Minister Wang Yi held their first talks since October on the Indonesian island of Bali, as the two powers stepped up cooperation at a time when the West is focused on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Despite the complexity of our relationship, I can say with some confidence that our delegations found today’s discussions useful, open and constructive,” Blinken said after five hours of talks.

“The relationship between the United States and China is of great importance for our countries, but also for the world. We are committed to conducting this relationship – this competition – responsibly,” he said, pledging to keep diplomatic channels open with Beijing.

The meeting, which saw the two have morning talks followed by a working lunch, focused primarily on preventing competition from escalating into unintended conflicts, but also Washington’s opposition to Beijing on a range of issues, including Taiwan and human rights.

“I have expressed the United States’ deep concern about Beijing’s increasingly provocative rhetoric and activities towards Taiwan and the vital importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” Blinken said.

He also expressed concern about Ukraine, pressed Wang on Beijing’s tacit support for its neighbor’s Moscow invasion and urged it to distance itself from Russia a day after the Kremlin’s top diplomat faced Western criticism at the G20 talks.

“This is truly a moment for all of us to stand up, as we have heard from country to country in the G20, to condemn the aggression and demand, among other things, that Russia grant access to food that is stuck in Ukraine ‘ said Blink.

US officials have also been cautiously optimistic about China’s stance on Ukraine and condemned its rhetorical support for Russia, but saw no sign of Beijing backing its words with material support.

Before the meeting began, Wang told reporters that Chinese President Xi Jinping believes in cooperation and “mutual respect” between the world’s two biggest economies and that there must be “normal exchanges” between them.

“We must work together to ensure this relationship moves forward on the right track,” Wang said in front of US and Chinese flags.

– Presenting sound –

It was Blinken and Wang’s first in-person meeting in months, and they are expected to prepare for virtual talks between Xi and President Joe Biden in the coming weeks as both powers step up their commitment and moderate their tone.

After a long cold during the pandemic between the two countries, their defense, finance and national security chiefs, as well as their top military commanders, have been speaking since last month.

China’s state-run Global Times, known for its criticism of the United States, wrote that the growing diplomacy “underscored the consensus on both sides to avoid an escalating confrontation.”

US views of China have hardened in recent years, and Biden has largely retained the substance of his predecessor Donald Trump’s tough approach of treating Beijing as the United States’ preeminent global competitor.

But Blinken made it clear in a recent speech that the United States is not seeking a new “Cold War,” even as he persisted with criticism — including accusing Beijing of genocide against the predominantly Muslim Uyghurs, an accusation he made after Saturday’s talks repeated .

The Biden administration is widely expected to soon ease some of Trump’s tariffs on Chinese goods, a move that could ease rising inflation, which has become a major political burden in the United States.

Xi, China’s most powerful leader in decades, is expected to shake up the foreign policy team at the Communist Party’s National Congress later this year.

But Craig Singleton, who follows China at the hawkish Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies, expected Xi to again appoint technocrats who can work with Washington.

“The reason is simple – China’s economy is facing significant headwinds and Chinese politicians seem eager to recognize that China’s aggressive rhetoric has backfired,” he said.

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