Blinken will make long-delayed China trip this week
Blinken (R) with Biden. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty
Secretary of State Tony Blinken will make a long-delayed trip to Beijing this week, the State Department confirmed on Wednesday.
Why it matters: Blinken will be the first secretary of state to visit China in five years, and the most senior Biden administration official to make the trip. While U.S. officials say Blinken's trip is part of an effort to stabilize ties and restore normal channels of communication, all signs point to a difficult visit.
* Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang rebuked Blinken in a pre-trip call on Wednesday, according to the Chinese readout, demanding that the U.S. "stop interfering in China's internal affairs, and stop harming China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition."
* The State Department readout said Blinken raised the need to "responsibly manage the U.S.-PRC relationship to avoid miscalculation and conflict," and noted the need to discuss issues of concern as well as "areas of potential cooperation."
Flashback:
* Blinken postponed his trip in February amid a diplomatic dispute over a Chinese spy balloon in the skies over the U.S.
* Since then, CIA Director Bill Burns and national security adviser Jake Sullivan have both met senior Chinese officials, though China's defense minister declined to meet his U.S. counterpart when they were both in Singapore earlier this month.
Beijing's Foreign Ministry said after the Qin-Blinken call that there had been "new difficulties and challenges" in the relationship, and "the responsibility is clear."
What's next: U.S. officials briefed reporters that Blinken would have multiple meetings while in Beijing but didn't specify with whom, or whether he would see President Xi Jinping.
* The State Department said Blinken's visit to China and the U.K. would run from June 16-21."
* We’re coming to Beijing with a realistic, competent approach and a sincere desire to manage our competition in the most responsible way possible,” Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Kritenbrink told reporters.
* The meeting won't produce a “long list of deliverables” but is part of a broader effort to "reduce the risk of miscalculation so that we do not veer into potential conflict," Kritenbrink said.
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