Frank is speaking. Blinken’s visit to Beijing

The US Secretary of State had “important talks” with the Chinese leadership. As a result, the countries agreed to “strengthen” relations.

China’s head of state and party leader Xi Jinping met today with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. Experts and diplomats unanimously claim that their conversation was historic and unusual in terms of protocol.

Blinken became the first US Secretary of State to visit Beijing in five years. His talks with the Chinese leadership are seen as a key litmus test for whether both governments can prevent a deterioration in relations amid lingering mistrust.

And it seems that the two superpowers have found a compromise as a result – in official statements they unanimously called today’s talks “frank, deep and constructive.”

An unresolved issue

It should be noted that on Sunday Blinken held a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and China’s first diplomat Wang Yi, which lasted seven and a half hours. Today, the meeting took place with the country’s leader Xi Jinping.

Xi greeted Blinken with an outstretched hand and ushered him into the Great Hall of the People, a venue Beijing often uses to greet heads of state – a positive sign in diplomacy.

epaimages.com

“The parties had frank and in-depth discussions,” Xi said at the start of the meeting.

“I hope that through this visit, Mr. Secretary, you will make a more positive contribution to the strengthening of China-US relations,” he added to Blinken.

The rest of the talks were held behind closed doors.

Overall, after two days of meetings, the US Secretary of State said that Washington and Beijing had made “progress” in improving relations.

“I came to Beijing to strengthen high-level communication channels, clearly express our positions and intentions in areas where there are differences, and explore areas where we can cooperate in our interests, agree on common transnational issues,” – said Blinken.

According to him, the parties have agreed on almost all the topics that are on the agenda of the meetings. The Chinese leader confirmed this.

“The Chinese side clarified its position, and both sides agreed to abide by the general agreements that President Biden and I reached in Bali. Both sides also made progress and agreed on some specific issue,” Xi’s press office said.

He also said he “hopes to see a healthy and sustainable Sino-US relationship” and believes the two countries “can overcome various difficulties.”

Despite signs of positive sentiment, Blinken acknowledged that there are issues over which the two countries are deeply, even bitterly, at odds. Beijing rejected an offer to establish ties between the Chinese and American armies.

“I want to emphasize that all this is not solved in one visit, one trip, one conversation. It is a process,” said Blinken.

Hot topic in Taiwan

Xi Jinping also urged the US not to “infringe on China’s legitimate rights and interests,” hinting at potential hotspots such as Taiwan.

Here, Blinken emphasized that the United States has reaffirmed the long-standing “one China” policy on Taiwan, and this government policy has not changed.

“We do not support Taiwan’s independence. We oppose any unilateral change in the status quo by either side,” he said.

The top US diplomat expressed hope for a peaceful resolution of differences.

“We remain committed to fulfilling our obligations under the Taiwan Relations Act, including ensuring that Taiwan has the ability to defend itself,” the Secretary of State concluded.

Note that during the meeting with Blinken, China’s top diplomat Wang Yi was the most categorical about Taiwan. In particular, he emphasized that “there is no room for compromise or concession” on this issue. Wang told Blinken that the US and China must choose “between cooperation and conflict” and between “dialogue and confrontation.”

Beijing promised

Blinken also said that during the visit, China again promised not to send weapons to Russia for the war in Ukraine.

However, Washington is concerned about possible cooperation with Russia by private Chinese companies.

“We have received assurances from China that it will not and will not provide lethal weapons to Russia for use in Ukraine. We have not seen any evidence to the contrary,” the US Secretary of State said.

The State Department later said that during Blinken’s meetings, he addressed “unfair and non-market economic practices”, human rights violations in Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong, and “peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”

“The parties discussed a range of global and regional security issues, including Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine, (North Korea’s) provocative actions, and US concerns about the intelligence activities of ( Chinese) in Cuba,” said Matthew Miller, a State Department spokesman.

news Correspondent.net on Telegram. Subscribe to our channel Athletistic