TheCable

Antony Blinken, US secretary of state, has met with Chinese President Xi Jinping as part of efforts to strengthen the fragile relationship between both countries.

Disputes between the US and China heightened in 2022 after both countries accused each other of spying with high-altitude balloons.

China made the accusation nearly a dozen times and described the alleged action as a breach of airspace, adding that the US has a knack for spying on other countries in the same way.

The US, on the other hand, said it shot down multiple unidentified objects including a weather balloon which had led to Blinken cancelling a planned trip to Beijing.

The diplomat called China’s alleged high-altitude “spying” unacceptable and irresponsible.

The global powers have also been at loggerheads over Beijing’s close ties with Moscow amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

‘CANDID AND CONSTRUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS’

Blinken, who is the first US secretary of state to visit Beijing in five years, met with Jinping on Monday and said there is a need to overcome the mistrust and friction between both nations.

Speaking after the meeting, he described the relationship between China and the US as “consequential” and that both nations have an obligation to manage the relationship “responsibly” especially as they are aligned on many “shared transnational interests”.

“Doing so serves the best interest of the United States, of China, and of the world,” Blinken said.

“I came to Beijing to strengthen high-level channels of communication to make clear our positions and intentions in areas of disagreement and to explore areas where we might work together where our interests align and we did all of that.”

Blinken said he had “candid, substantive and constructive conversations” with Jinping, adding that “direct engagement and sustained communication at senior levels is the best way to manage our differences and ensure that competition does not veer into conflict”.

He said the meeting was aimed at quenching the idea that the US is seeking to economically contain China.

According to the diplomat, China reiterated that it would not supply lethal aid to Russia to use in its invasion of Ukraine.

‘MEETING NECESSARY TO CHOOSE COOPERATION OR CONFLICT’

Wang Yi, the Chinese foreign affairs adviser, blamed Washington’s “wrong perception” of China as the “root cause” of the decline in relations.

Yi asked the US to stop “suppressing” his country’s technological development and hyping the “China threat”.

“We must reverse the downward spiral of China-US relations, promote a return to a healthy and stable track, and jointly find the right way for China and the United States to co-exist in the new era,” Wang said.

Yi said Blinken’s visit came at “a critical juncture in US-China relations, where a choice needs to be made between dialogue or confrontation, cooperation or conflict”.

The Chinese official also reiterated that Taiwan is one of China’s “core interests,” over which it “has no room for compromise or back down”.

China considers Taiwan, an independent country, as part of its territory and frowns against diplomatic visits to the island.

Last year, China imposed sanctions on Nancy Pelosi, US house speaker, after she visited Taiwan, despite repeated warnings from Jinping to President Joe Biden.

Pelosi was the highest-ranking American politician to make such a move in 25 years.