Earlier, US President Joe Biden asked the CIA director to carry out “sensitive missions” at home and abroad.
US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director William Burns secretly visited China last month to “unfreeze” relations between the states. The Financial Times reported this, citing sources familiar with the situation.
It noted that Burns’ secret visit shows how “the White House is concerned about the deterioration of relations between Beijing and Washington.”
Sources told the publication that the CIA director traveled to China for talks with state officials. The visit comes at a time when the US is pushing for high-level engagement with China to strengthen relations between the states.
The White House and the CIA did not comment on this information.
The FT, citing an unnamed US official, writes that during the visit, Burns met with representatives of Chinese intelligence.
“Director Burns visited Beijing last month, where he met with Chinese colleagues and mentioned the importance of maintaining open lines of communication in intelligence channels,” the source said.
The publication notes that former US President Joe Biden asked the CIA director to conduct “sensitive missions” at home and abroad. Specifically, Burns visited Russia in November 2021 to secure Russian officials from invading Ukraine.
Last month, Biden said he expected an inevitable “thaw” in US-China relations. The Financial Times said Burns had visited China before this announcement.
It was earlier reported that China rejected the US request for a meeting of the heads of the defense ministries of the two countries.
Source: korrespondent
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