US Secretary of State Antony Blinken flies to Beijing this weekend with expectations low that he will make headway on the long list of disputes between the US and China
Blinken will hold meetings in China on June 18-19 and may meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, sources said. He will be the highest-ranking U.S. government official to visit China since Biden took office in January 2021.the trip will yield a breakthrough in how the U.S. and China deal with each other. That followed a tense evening phone call with Blinken on Tuesday during which Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang told the U.S. to stop meddling in China's affairs.
"For China, the most important audience is the global south. For the U.S., it's partners and allies. So even going through the motions has some utility for both Washington and Beijing." While Blinken's main goal will be "candid, direct and constructive" discussions, the U.S. officials said, breakthroughs are not likely on any major issues, including the flow of fentanyl precursors and Americans detained in China.A meeting on the sidelines of a G20 summit last November in Bali briefly eased fears of a new Cold War, but following the dispute over an alleged Chinese spy balloon in February, high-level communication between the countries has been rare.
"Beijing agreed to the visit because it seems to be the one thing that is blocking many other things, such as working-level dialogues and the visits by other cabinet members," said Yun Sun, director of the China Program at the Stimson Center think tank in Washington.
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