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US and Chinese diplomats held ‘candid and productive discussions’ in Beijing: State Department * Announcement comes amid recent high-level overtures to boost dialogue between the countries after months of worsening ties * Two sides said to have ‘exchanged views’ on the bilateral relationship, cross-strait issues and channels of communication
Kawala Xie in Beijingand Mark Magnier in New York Published: 2:00am, 6 Jun, 2023 Updated: 2:41am, 6 Jun, 2023
Senior State Department official Daniel Kritenbrink’s trip this week to Beijing is seen as part of a US effort to re-engage China. Photo: AP
Senior American and Chinese diplomats held “candid and productive discussions” on Monday in Beijing amid ongoing efforts to keep lines of communication open and build on recent diplomatic overtures between the two countries, the State Department said.
Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant US secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs – the most senior American official confirmed to have visited China since an alleged Chinese spy balloon was shot down in US airspace in early February – met with Ministry of Foreign Affairs Executive Vice-Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu. Kritenbrink’s week-long trip will also include a stop in New Zealand.
“The two sides exchanged views on the bilateral relationship, cross-strait issues, channels of communication and other matters,” the State Department said in a short readout on Monday. “US officials made clear that the United States would compete vigorously and stand up for US interests and values.”
In a follow-up briefing, State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel added that the two sides also discussed climate, fentanyl precursors, human rights and wrongfully detained American citizens.
The trip followed reports of a secret trip to China by CIA director William Burns last month and recent meetings between commerce ministers Wang Wentao and Gina Raimondo in Washington. US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi also met in Austria.
Kritenbrink is accompanied on the China leg of his trip this week by Sarah Beran, senior director for China and Taiwan affairs at the National Security Council, while Nicholas Burns, the US ambassador to China, also took part in meetings. The three also met with Yang Tao from the foreign ministry’s department of North America and Oceania affairs.
The high-level meeting came after the American and Chinese defence chiefs crossed paths – but did not hold talks – at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore over the weekend.
In separate sessions, Li Shangfu and Lloyd Austin traded rhetoric over Taiwan and regional security.
The conference was overshadowed by a close encounter between US and Chinese warships in the Taiwan Strait on Saturday. The US accused the Chinese warship of making an “unsafe” manoeuvre by crossing in front of the American destroyer.
The Chinese military defended its action as “necessary measures” and accused the US of “deliberate provocations”.
Even before the balloon saga, relations between China and the US plummeted following then-US House speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan last August.
Kritenbrink’s trip is seen as part of a US bid to ease those tensions. But Chinese tabloid Global Times dismissed the effort, saying on Sunday that it was driven more by America’s interest in portraying itself as seeking communication with Beijing.
US President Joe Biden has signalled his intention to speak to Chinese President Xi Jinping soon.
Sullivan said in an interview with CNN on Sunday that the two leaders would meet “at some point” as American officials continued to engage their Chinese counterparts at senior levels over the coming months.
