What hopes the United States associates with Blinken’s visit to China

Before his trip to China, which was postponed due to diplomatic tensions, US Secretary of State Blinken is open. Signs of rapprochement come from US President Biden, who holds out the prospect of a meeting with President Xi.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has announced that his China visit to speak “directly and openly” about “very real concerns” in the United States. A series of meetings with senior Chinese government officials are planned in Beijing, Blinken said.

The aim is to establish open communication so that both countries can shape their relationships responsibly. Relations between the US and China are due to several points of contention as tense. The United States wanted to ensure that “the competition we have with China” does not “turn into conflict” because of avoidable misunderstandings, Blinken told the press in Washington on Friday.

His trip to Beijing grew out of a meeting between President Joe Biden and China’s head of state Xi Jinping in Bali last year. The talks in Beijing were originally planned for February. Because of a suspected Chinese spy balloons over the United States However, Blinken canceled the trip at short notice. Biden downplayed that incident on Saturday: He doesn’t think the leadership in Beijing knew where the balloon was or how it was outfitted. “I think it was more embarrassing than intended.”

Details of the trip unclear

It is Blinken’s first trip to the People’s Republic as US chief diplomat – and the first visit by a US Secretary of State to China in five years. A two-day stay is planned. Details are not known. As the Reuters news agency reports with reference to government circles, Blinken is also supposed to meet his counterpart Qin Gang. A meeting with President Xi Jinping is also possible.

mutual threats

Before Blinken’s arrival in Beijing, US President Biden promised a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. “I hope to meet with Xi again in the coming months and talk about legitimate differences that we have – but also about areas where we can get along,” Biden said on a trip to Philadelphia, US Pennsylvania.

China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, Beijing’s threats against the democratic island republic of Taiwan and the ongoing trade dispute between the two countries are causing contention. The US government sees China as the greatest geopolitical challenge. China, in turn, accuses the United States of hegemonic ambitions.