The administration of US President Joe Biden is trying to make it hard for China to say no to engagement by seeking a flurry of meetings and telephone calls, a strategy aimed at easing tensions and painting Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) as recalcitrant if he refuses.
The approach, described by people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified, has involved proposals of meetings and calls from the lowest level all the way up to a possible conversation between Biden and Xi, something that has been stalled for months.
It is also meant to appease allied nations in Asia and Europe that are anxious the US is not doing enough to ease tension that some fear could lead to open conflict.
Photo: AFP
The people said the strategy could paint the US as a supplicant seeking the favor of a powerful adversary.
It has already garnered skepticism from critics of the Biden administration, who warn it makes the US look weak.
A White House spokeswoman did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
“This is a smart, but risky play,” former US National Security Council Asia director Evan Medeiros said. “It looks credible to Europe and Asia, but it also risks reinforcing China’s view that we need them more and they can drive the US-China agenda.”
The push started in earnest as a furor died down over an alleged Chinese spy balloon that traversed the US in February and was shot down by US fighter jets.
Since a visit by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to the US last month, the administration has floated the idea of calls and meetings with senior leadership in China, including between US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and his counterpart, and US Trade Representative Katherine Tai (戴琪) and Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao (王文濤).
US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry are planning trips to China.
That planning has also been accompanied by a broader messaging campaign from Yellen and US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, who said that the US does not want to sever economic ties — just address the possible national security concerns.
Biden’s team is also looking to establish what it calls guardrails around a relationship facing deeper, more systemic strains around economic competition and China’s continued partnership with Russia.
Beijing has rejected US attempts to frame the relationship around “competition” and “guardrails,” with Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Qin Gang (秦剛) in March saying that the intention is to “contain and suppress China in all respects.”
China has responded tepidly to the US requests. It has ignored Austin’s outreach for calls and has not publicly responded to his request for a meeting on the sidelines of a summit in Singapore next month. Beijing has not even said whether Wang would travel to the US for an APEC meeting, at which Tai has floated the idea of bilateral talks.
It is also unclear when Biden would speak with Xi, something the US president first mentioned in February.
On Wednesday, Biden said the call with Xi was still in the works, without providing a timeframe.
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