China-U.S. ties "beginning to stabilize," but won't be an easy road

Beijing — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Friday pinch Chinese President Xi Jinping and elder Chinese officials, informing of nan dangers of misunderstandings and miscalculations arsenic nan United States and China butted heads complete a number of contentious bilateral, location and world issues. Blinken met pinch Xi successful Beijing aft holding talks pinch Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Public Security Minister Wang Xiaohong.

Talks betwixt nan 2 sides person accrued successful caller months, moreover arsenic differences person grown.

"We are committed to maintaining and strengthening lines of connection betwixt us," truthful that nan 2 sides tin forestall immoderate "any miscommunications, immoderate misperceptions and immoderate miscalculations," Blinken said.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets Chinese President Xi Jinping astatine nan Great Hall of nan People successful Beijing, China, April 26, 2024. Mark Schiefelbein/Pool/REUTERS

Earlier, Blinken and Wang besides underscored nan value of keeping lines of connection unfastened arsenic they lamented persistent and deepening divisions that frighten world security. Those divisions were highlighted earlier this week erstwhile President Biden signed a monolithic overseas assistance measure that contains respective elements nan Chinese spot arsenic problematic.

Their comments hinted astatine a agelong database of differences to beryllium discussed, including Taiwan and nan South China Sea, trade and human rights, China's support for Russia and nan accumulation and export of synthetic opioid precursors.

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"Overall, nan China-U.S. narration is opening to stabilize," Wang told Blinken astatine nan commencement of astir 5 1/2 hours of talks. "But astatine nan aforesaid time, nan antagonistic factors successful nan narration are still expanding and building and nan narration is facing each kinds of disruptions."

"Should China and nan United States support to nan correct guidance of moving guardant pinch stableness aliases return to a downward spiral?" he asked. "This is simply a awesome mobility earlier our 2 countries and tests our sincerity and ability."

"China's morganatic improvement authorities person been unreasonably suppressed and our halfway interests are facing challenges," he said. "China's concerns are consistent. We person ever called for respect of each other's halfway interests and impulse nan United States not to interfere successful China's soul affairs, not to clasp China's improvement back, and not to measurement connected China's reddish lines connected China's sovereignty, security, and improvement interests."

Blinken responded by saying nan Biden management places a premium connected U.S.-China dialogue, moreover connected issues of dispute. He noted location had been immoderate advancement successful nan past year, but suggested talks would proceed to beryllium difficult.

"I look guardant to these discussions being very clear, very nonstop astir nan areas wherever we person differences and wherever nan United States stands, and I person nary uncertainty you will do nan aforesaid connected behalf of China," Blinken told Wang.

"There is nary substitute successful our judgement for face-to-face diplomacy successful bid to effort to move forward, but besides to make judge we're arsenic clear arsenic imaginable astir nan areas wherever we person differences astatine nan very slightest to debar misunderstandings, to debar miscalculations," he said.

The State Department said later that Blinken and Wang had "in-depth, substantive, and constructive discussions astir areas of quality arsenic good arsenic areas of cooperation" and made clear that Blinken had stood his crushed connected U.S. concerns.

Blinken "emphasized that nan U.S. will proceed to guidelines up for our interests and values and those of our friends and partners, including connected quality authorities and economical issues," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said successful a statement.

Blinken arrived successful China connected Wednesday, visiting Shanghai soon earlier Mr. Biden signed nan $95 cardinal overseas assistance package that has respective elements apt to anger Beijing, including $8 cardinal to antagonistic China's increasing aggressiveness toward Taiwan and successful nan South China Sea. It besides seeks to force TikTok's China-based genitor institution to sell nan societal media platform.

China and nan United States are nan awesome players successful nan Indo-Pacific. Washington has go progressively alarmed by Beijing's increasing aggressiveness successful caller years toward Taiwan and its smaller Southeast Asian neighbors pinch which it has important territorial and maritime disputes successful nan South China Sea.

China has railed against U.S. assistance to Taiwan and instantly condemned nan assistance arsenic a vulnerable provocation. It besides powerfully opposes efforts to unit TikTok's sale.

The measure besides allots $61 cardinal for Ukraine to take sides itself from Russia's invasion. The Biden management has complained loudly that Chinese support for Russia's military-industrial assemblage has allowed Moscow to subvert occidental sanctions and ramp up attacks connected Ukraine.

U.S. officials person said China's ties pinch Russia would beryllium a superior taxable of speech during Blinken's visit, and conscionable earlier Friday's meetings began, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced he would sojourn China successful May.

In:
• Taiwan
• Antony Blinken
• War
• Xi Jinping
• Human Rights
• South China Sea
• Fentanyl
• Opioids
• China
• Asia