Antony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State, is set to visit China from April 24th to 26th. This marks his second visit to China in less than a year, following his previous visit in June last year. As the highest-ranking diplomat of the United States and the top cabinet official in the Biden administration, Blinken's visit to China naturally attracts attention.
Blinken's visit to China in June last year, though delayed due to unforeseen events, played a role in improving China-US relations and facilitating bilateral communication. His last visit laid the groundwork for the November summit between the leaders of the two countries.
What is Blinken's agenda during this visit? What does he hope to achieve?
According to statements from the U.S. State Department, Blinken will visit Shanghai and Beijing. The topics of discussion are wide-ranging, covering bilateral relations, regional and global issues such as the Middle East, Ukraine, and the South China Sea, and the Taiwan Question.
Based on remarks from U.S. State Department officials and media reports, in terms of bilateral relations, Blinken is expected to discuss military communication, artificial intelligence, personnel exchanges, and drug enforcement.
Blinken will affirm that despite differing opinions between China and the U.S. in many areas, it is crucial for both countries, as major powers, to "responsibly manage competition." In fact, the Chinese government has consistently emphasized the need for effective management of differences between China and the U.S.
On regional issues, particularly regarding the South China Sea and Taiwan Province, Blinken is expected to reiterate the longstanding positions of the U.S. government.
Regarding global issues, Blinken's visit may focus on the situation in Ukraine.
As for the outcome of this visit, senior U.S. State Department officials have indicated a "realistic attitude" towards the possibility of breakthroughs on these issues. However, the U.S. hopes to continue using diplomatic means to promote communication and prevent misjudgments.
Indeed, the relationship between China and the U.S. is both important and complex. Expecting significant breakthroughs from a single visit by senior officials is unrealistic. What's crucial is maintaining communication. As Xie Feng, Chinese Ambassador to the U.S., recently stated, from traditional areas such as trade and agriculture to emerging fields like climate change and artificial intelligence, there are extensive common interests and opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation between China and the U.S. Both sides should advance cooperation with a spirit of reciprocity, manage differences with caution, and turn the "San Francisco vision" into reality, promoting stable, healthy, and sustainable development of China-U.S. relations.
Source：Yangcheng Evening News
With less than two visits to China in less than a year, what does Blinken want to talk about this time?
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit China from April 24 to 26. This is his second visit to China in less than a year, following last June. As the highest-ranking diplomat in the United States and the head of the Biden administration's cabinet-level officials, Blinken's visit to China will certainly be eye-catching.
Blinken's visit to China in June last year was delayed by some unexpected events, which can be said to be a "belated" visit, but that visit still played a role in improving relations and promoting communication, and also laid the foundation for the China-US summit in November last year.
So what does Blinken want to talk about during his visit to China, and what do he want to get?
According to a statement from the U.S. State Department, Blinken's trip includes Shanghai and Beijing. The topics covered by the trip were wide-ranging, including bilateral relations, regional and global, including the Middle East, Ukraine, the South China Sea and Taiwan.
According to the remarks of some officials of the US State Department and media reports, in terms of bilateral relations between China and the United States, Blinken wants to discuss bilateral military communication, artificial intelligence, personnel exchanges, and the fight against drugs.
Blinken will acknowledge that while China and the United States disagree on many areas, it is important for both sides to "manage competition responsibly" as major powers. In fact, the Chinese government has also been emphasizing that the differences between China and the United States should be effectively managed.
On regional issues, especially the South China Sea and Taiwan, Blinken should revisit the old tune of the US administration.
Among the global issues, Blinken's visit to China should be more concerned about the Ukraine issue.
As for the effect of the visit, a senior US State Department official said that the US side has a "realistic attitude" on whether there can be a breakthrough on these issues, but the US side hopes to continue to use diplomatic means to promote communication and eliminate miscalculations.
Indeed, the relationship between China and the United States is important and complex, and it is unrealistic to expect a breakthrough from a single visit by a senior official. It is important that the two sides maintain communication. As Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng said a few days ago, China and the United States have extensive common interests and mutually beneficial cooperation space in traditional fields such as economy and trade, agriculture and emerging fields such as climate change and artificial intelligence. The two sides should promote cooperation in a spirit of reciprocity, manage differences in a prudent manner, turn the "San Francisco Vision" into a "reality", and promote the stable, healthy and sustainable development of China-US relations.
Text丨Yangcheng Evening News International Commentator Qian Kejin Translation | Liu Jiahui