Blinken rumored to visit China within weeks or meet Xi Jinping: What is known so far?

07.06.2023

A number of international media reported citing unnamed U.S. officials that Blinken would resume his long-delayed visit to China within weeks and might meet with Xi Jinping. The U.S. State Department has not yet confirmed it. What is the known news so far?

(Deutsche Welle Chinese Network) Bloomberg reported on Tuesday (June 6) citing anonymous sources that U.S. Secretary of State Blinken (Antony Blinken) plans to visit China in the next few weeks to meet with senior Chinese officials, including the Chinese President. Xi Jinping.

Exactly when Blinken will restart his trip to China remains uncertain because discussions remain private, several U.S. officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity. This news was first reported by Bloomberg, followed by Reuters, CNN, Wall Street Journal and other international media.

In this regard, the spokesperson of the US State Department stated that there is currently no relevant itinerary to announce.Blinken’s previously canceled trip to ChinaWill be done “as and when conditions permit”.

In February this year,US says a ‘spy balloon’ from China flew over its airspace and shot it down, Prompting Blinken to postpone the original plan to visit China, Sino-US relations have also dropped to a freezing point. The relationship between the two countries has been tense recently due to military discord, punitive economic measures, and mutual accusations that undermine global stability. However, the US is trying to resume high-level interactions between the two sides, and the tension between the US and China is expected to ease.

Increased chance of misjudgment?

In recent weeks, military disputes between China and the United States have continued. During the joint mission of the United States and Canadian warships in the Taiwan Strait,At one point, a Chinese warship nearly collided with a U.S. missile destroyer within 150 yards (about 137 meters). On May 30, the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command also released a video stating that a Chinese J-16 fighter jet intercepted a U.S. reconnaissance plane in an “unsafe and unprofessional” manner over the South China Sea on May 26.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby (John Kirby) warned that China’s “aggressiveness is getting stronger and stronger” and “it won’t be long before someone gets hurt”; Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin then responded at a regular press conference, The actions taken by China were “professional, legal, and reasonable.” The U.S. military warships “traveled thousands of miles to China’s doorstep to provoke, and insisted on approaching China’s territorial waters and airspace to conduct close reconnaissance and show off their power.”

Reuters reported that White House National Security Council Indo-Pacific coordinator Kurt Campbell (Kurt Campbell) said at an event at the Hudson Institute (Hudson Institute), a US think tank, on the 6th that although the communication channel with China is “opening up”, as the The Chinese military’s activities near the U.S. military have increased, and the possibility of misjudgment between the two sides in military operations is “existing and rising.”

Campbell stressed that maintaining “proper diplomacy” with China was critical, but Chinese officials have rebuffed U.S. attempts to communicate in a potential conflict. Last week, Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu refused to meet with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore.

But Kirby said on the 6th that the US is pushing its cabinet ministers to interact with Chinese officials, and relevant progress has been made so far.

Recently, Chinese and US officials have also started exchanges, includingAssistant Secretary of State for Asia and the Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink met with Chinese diplomats in Beijing during June 4th, start the “confession” dialogue. In May, CIA Director William Burns also reportedly visited China secretly. In addition, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and Director of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Communist Party of China Wang Yi also met face-to-face in Austria in May.The two sides talked for nearly 8 hours in two consecutive days。

(Bloomberg, Reuters, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

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