Wang and Sullivan Hold New Round of China-US Strategic Communication
U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan (L) & Chinese FM Wang Yi (R), Aug. 27, 2024. Photo: X/ @CCTV_Plus
August 27, 2024 Hour: 9:46 am
Their meeting is expected to revolve around implementing the agreements reached by Presidents Xi and Biden in 2023.
On Tuesday, Wang Yi, director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, held a new round of China-U.S. strategic communication with U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in Beijing.
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During the meeting, the Chinese diplomat emphasized that the primary task of the new round of strategic communication revolves around implementing the agreements previously reached by Presidents Xi Jinping and Joe Biden in 2023.
In November 2023, Xi and Biden met in San Francisco with the goal of stabilizing the tumultuous bilateral relationship, agreeing to combat fentanyl trafficking, and to reopen military communication channels. However, that meeting highlighted the tension between the two powers regarding Taiwan, a self-governed Chinese territory to which Washington sends a large quantity of arms.
Before engaging in bilateral talks, Wang expressed hope that the meetings would help promote “healthy and stable” relations through “substantial and constructive conversations.”
“The ties between China and the U.S. are of vital importance to the world. In recent years, the relationship between our two countries has been full of setbacks and vicissitudes,” Wang stated, adding that “lessons must be learned” and emphasizing the need to strive for “mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and cooperation.”
“I hope that our communication is strategic and substantial, as always, but also constructive. We must strive to advance the relationship towards that ‘San Francisco vision’ and truly achieve stable, healthy, and sustainable ties,” he said.
For his part, Sullivan indicated that he hopes to discuss a wide range of topics with Wang, “including those on which the two nations agree, but also those where there are differences that must be effectively and substantially managed.”
“President Biden was clear in his conversations with President Xi that he is committed to managing the relationship responsibly. The work we have done since then demonstrates this,” Sullivan commented, as quoted by the Hong Kong-based newspaper South China Morning Post.
He also stated that “efforts” are needed to ensure that the competition between the two countries does not veer into conflict. “We must find ways to align our interests and work together. And that requires strategic, substantial, and constructive dialogues,” he added.
China will present “firm demands” on the Taiwan issue to the U.S. envoys. In the meetings, both sides are also expected to discuss their trade disputes, tensions in the South China Sea, and the alleged support China provides to Russia’s defense industry—a claim that Beijing denies.
teleSUR/ JF Source: EFE
