Blinken meets top Chinese diplomat in Beijing
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken met with China’s top diplomat Wang Yi on Monday on the final day of a trip to Beijing to stabilize relations between the two countries.
Mr. Blinken and Mr. Wang shook hands at the Diaoyutai State Guest House and entered the conference room for the talks with delegations from both sides.
On Sunday, Mr. Blinken and China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang held a “candid” and “personal” meeting in Beijing, the State Department said.
During the seven-and-a-half-hour meeting, Hata accepted an invitation to visit the United States. An agreement was also reached on increasing flights between the two countries.
Additionally, the two countries will continue to work on some issues “at a working level,” a senior State Department official said.
After a face-to-face meeting between Blinken and Qin, a working dinner was held at the Diaoyutai State Guest House late Sunday.
“The Secretary made it clear that the United States will always defend the interests and values of the American people and will work with our allies and partners to advance our vision of a world that is free, open and upholds the international rules-based order.” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.
He added that top U.S. and Chinese diplomats have also discussed ways to promote people-to-people exchanges.
Secretary of State Brinken visited Beijing for the first time since 2018. Mr. Blinken’s two-day visit was postponed from February after a Chinese surveillance balloon passed through US airspace.
China’s Assistant Foreign Minister Hua Chunying tweeted, “Hopefully this meeting will help bring Sino-US relations back to what the two presidents[U.S. President Joe Biden and China’s Xi Jinping]agreed in Bali.” ‘ said. During the meeting, the two leaders agreed to maintain open lines of communication.
“I think I can say with great confidence that there is a need for advanced level communication channels and that there is a recognition on both sides that we are at a critical point in our relationship where we believe it is important to reduce the risk of miscalculation. A senior State Department official told reporters.
Senior U.S. officials said the main topics of Mr Blinken’s talks in Beijing were regional security, anti-narcotics, climate change, global macroeconomic stability and the U.S. unjustly imprisoned in China. people, and exchanges between Americans and Chinese.
Americans Unjustly Detained in China
American children whom the United States believes are being held unfairly by Chinese authorities have asked Mr. Blinken to take up their father’s case with Chinese authorities.
“Behind every hostage is a family who suffers every day,” the “Take Your Family Home” campaign said in a tweet on Sunday.
“This Sunday will be the seventh time I’ve missed Father’s Day with my dad,” Harrison Lee said. “Releasing my father is one of the easiest ways the Chinese government can show it is serious about normalizing relations.”
Harrison Lee’s father, Kai Lee, is an American citizen and has been detained in China since September 2016. He was later sentenced to 10 years in prison on espionage charges, a charge his family denies.
Alice Lynn is the daughter of American pastor David Lynn, who was detained in 2006 under unclear circumstances and later sentenced to life in prison for contract fraud. Lin’s family has consistently maintained his innocence. Her sentence for Ms. Lin was later commuted and she is expected to be released in 2029.
“Secretary Blinken, we miss my father. Please do everything you can to bring him home,” Lin told VOA.
Taiwan
The US government said China’s military escalation in the Taiwan Strait was a “global concern.”
A senior State Department official told VOA that it was in the United States’ “enduring interest” to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. China is believed to be stepping up economic repression targeting Taiwan ahead of presidential elections.
In May, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haynes told senators that China’s invasion of Taiwan could bring the world’s largest advanced semiconductor production to a halt, wiping out up to $1 trillion a year.
Cheng Yu Lee, chief economist at Taiwan’s Taisin Financial Holdings Ltd., said the figure is “too small” as it accounts for only about 6% of China’s gross domestic product (GDP). .
Lee said a military clash in the Taiwan Strait would affect other Asian economies, such as Japan and South Korea, whose gross domestic product (GDP) is at least $5 trillion. He also mentioned the market value of tech giants such as Apple, Nvidia and AMD, which Lee estimates to be worth at least $3 trillion.
“If Taiwan is under attack, the US stock market could lose $3 trillion,” Li said at a May 12 event hosted by the Washington-based newspaper. Center for Strategic and International Studies.
“If I were Xi Jinping, I would be happy to attack Taiwan. Only 6%.”
NGOs work for human rights
and signed letter to BlinkenForty-two non-governmental organizations called on the top US diplomat to hold the Chinese government accountable for human rights abuses, citing the crackdown on civilians who participated in peaceful protests.
“Hong Kong police have detained more than 20 people for mourning the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre after they banned the annual candle vigil in Victoria Park,” the letter said.
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