U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, this Thursday amidst soaring global tensions due to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
In his opening remarks at the State Department, Blinken expressed his anticipation for “productive discussions in the coming days.”
The current administration under President Biden has been actively working to mend and normalize diplomatic relations with China following a notably strained period, highlighted by the recent incident involving a Chinese surveillance balloon.
Blinken, along with other high-ranking officials from the Cabinet, has made official visits to China in recent months. His trip to the country in June marked the first visit by a U.S. Secretary of State in five years, and he is the highest-ranking official from the U.S. to do so since President Biden assumed office in 2021.
Wang’s ongoing visit to Washington, which includes scheduled meetings with National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and President Biden himself, might set the stage for a future dialogue between President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the upcoming APEC conference in San Francisco.
U.S. representatives have indicated that the discussions between Blinken and Wang will cover a broad spectrum of topics pertinent to U.S.-China relations, including the issue of American citizens detained in China, such as Mark Swidan and Kai Li.
In the midst of a demanding diplomatic tour across the Middle East this month, Blinken connected with Wang over a phone call, urging China to leverage its influence with Iran to help de-escalate the conflict.
“Members of this council and permanent members in particular have a special responsibility to prevent this conflict from spreading,” Blinken said.
Wang noted that the US and China have “disagreements” and “differences,” but “at the same time we also share important common interests, and we face challenges that we need to respond (to) together.”
