Beijing – Secretary of State anthony wink He told NBC News on Monday that his trip to Beijing marked Stabilize Sino-US relations And these countries should start from spy balloon event that postponed his earlier visit.
“That chapter should end,” Blinken said in an interview before leaving Beijing, where he met with senior Chinese officials, including the president, for two days Xi Jinping.
Stopping the downward spiral in relations between the world’s two largest economies “is not the result of a visit, even as tense and in some ways productive as this one,” Blinken said. “But it’s a good start and I think it’s an important start.”
U.S. officials played down expectations for the visit, saying any breakthroughs were unlikely.Even after Blinken’s visit, the two countries have yet to restore several military lines of communication that China cut off last year in protest of the former House speaker Nancy Pelosi visits Taiwanan autonomous democracy that Beijing claims as its territory.
Blinken said that communication must be re-established, citing a recent Taiwan Strait and South China Sea China says it is necessary to defend national sovereignty, but the United States has labeled it dangerous.
“It’s the fastest route to unintentional conflict,” Blinken said, adding that restoring the channel “is not something we’re giving up on.”
Blinken’s trip to China, the first by a U.S. secretary of state since 2018, was postponed in February after alleged Chinese spy balloons were spotted flying over U.S. soil. president biden He said last month that an agreement he had reached with Xi to keep communications open had also been undermined by “this stupid balloon”.
Blinken said the Biden administration, order to shoot down balloons The military off the coast of South Carolina took the necessary action to protect U.S. interests and made its concerns clear to Beijing, which insisted it was an unmanned civilian airship that went off course. “We said what we needed to say and made it clear what we needed to say and made it clear that it didn’t happen again, and as soon as it didn’t happen that chapter should be over,” Blinken said.
“But it’s something we’re very vigilant about and we’ll continue to watch,” he added.
The results of the FBI investigation into the balloon, which U.S. officials recovered from the balloon, have not been made public.
There were concerns last week that Blinken’s trip might be delayed again at the last minute after U.S. officials claimed that China had a spy station in Cuba, a claim both Chinese and Cuban officials denied.
Blinken said he had repeatedly raised the issue with his Chinese counterparts.
“Of course, this is nothing new,” he said. “It’s something that’s been going on for years, and it’s something we’ve been doing for several years.”
Blinken dismisses criticism that Biden administration downplayed espionage allegations, Delay on punitive economic measures against China to revive Sino-US relations.
“We show no mercy, and I certainly don’t show mercy to our Chinese counterparts,” he said.
“I think if you look at the actions we’ve taken, it’s hard to justify that, and in fact, if you listen to our Chinese counterparts, they’re saying the exact opposite, they’re complaining that a lot of the actions we take because it’s necessary to promote our national interest.”
Congressional Republicans had expressed opposition to Blinken’s trip, saying the White House needed to take a tougher stance against Beijing. Blinken said it would be “utterly irresponsible” not to engage with China.
“If we don’t engage, it’s much harder to make sure that the competition we’re in doesn’t come into conflict,” he said.
Blinken’s trip to China could pave the way for a phone or face-to-face meeting between Biden and Xi, who first met more than a decade ago when they were both vice presidents. The two have not spoken since meeting in person on the sidelines of a summit in Indonesia last November.
“Ultimately, there’s no substitute for direct dialogue between two leaders,” Blinken said. “This is especially true in China given the power Xi Jinping wields.”
Janis Mackey Frayer reported from Beijing, and Jennifer Jett from Hong Kong.