US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday said that his visit to China today aims to open up better communications “by addressing misperceptions and avoiding miscalculations,” as US lawmakers urged him to also visit Taiwan.
“Intense competition requires sustained diplomacy to ensure that competition does not veer into confrontation or conflict,” Blinken said. “That is what the world expects of both the United States and China.”
Blinken is today and tomorrow to hold talks in Beijing on the first trip by a top US diplomat in nearly five years.
Photo: AFP
The trip was rescheduled after the US canceled a planned Beijing visit by Blinken in February after Washington said it detected — and later shot down — a Chinese spy balloon.
The first goal of the trip to China is “to establish open and empowered communications, so that our two countries responsibly manage our relationship,” Blinken told a news conference.
He said the aim was also to set the record clear on US interests and values, and to explore areas of possible cooperation, including on global economic stability, fighting drug trafficking, and climate and health issues.
He added he would also raise the issue of US citizens detained by China.
Blinken was speaking in a joint news conference with visiting Singaporean Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan.
Balakrishnan said the Asian region had its eye on US-China relations, calling it “the challenge of the century.”
“This is a very important and critical moment, not just for the United States and China,” he said.
“The rest of the world will be watching. So we hope and believe that you will be able to manage the differences,” he said.
On Thursday, a group of US representatives called on Blinken to stop over in Taiwan during his China trip.
In a letter, the lawmakers said that the visit would be consistent with the original intent of the Taiwan Travel Act, which “encourages high-ranking US executive branch officials to visit Taiwan and meet with their counterparts.”
Such a visit would also enable Blinken to address concerns regarding delays in the delivery of US weapons systems to Taiwan.
“Finally, and perhaps most importantly, it would send a clear message that the United States does not need a permission slip from the Chinese Communist Party to meet with our friends and allies in Taiwan — or anywhere else,” the letter said.
The letter was signed by US representatives Tom Tiffany, Scott Perry, Nancy Mace, Byron Donalds, Dan Crenshaw, Andy Ogles and Earl Carter.
Additional reporting by staff writer
PLA MANEUVERS: Although Beijing has yet to formally announce military drills, its coast guard vessels have been spotted near and around Taiwan since Friday The Taiwanese military is on high alert and is closely monitoring the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) air and naval deployments after Beijing yesterday reserved seven airspace areas east of its Zhejiang and Fujian provinces through Wednesday. Beijing’s action was perceived as a precursor to a potential third “Joint Sword” military exercise, which national security experts said the PLA could launch following President William Lai’s (賴清德) state visits to the nation’s three Pacific allies and stopovers in Hawaii and Guam last week. Unlike the Joint Sword military exercises in May and October, when Beijing provided detailed information about the affected areas, it
CHINA: The activities come amid speculation that Beijing might launch military exercises in response to Lai’s recent visit to Pacific allies The Ministry of National Defense (MND) yesterday said China had nearly doubled the number of its warships operating around the nation in the previous 24 hours, ahead of what security sources expect would be a new round of war games. China’s military activities come amid speculation Beijing might organize military drills around the nation in response to President William Lai’s (賴清德) recent visit to Pacific allies, including stops in Hawaii and Guam, a US territory. Lai returned from the week-long trip on Friday night. Beijing has held two rounds of war games around Taiwan this year, and sends ships and military planes
Five flights have been arranged to help nearly 2,000 Taiwanese tourists return home from Okinawa after being stranded due to cruise ship maintenance issues, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced yesterday. China Airlines Ltd (中華航空), and EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空) have arranged five flights with a total of 748 additional seats to transport 1,857 passengers from the MSC Bellissima back to Taiwan, the ministry said. The flights have been scheduled for yesterday and today by the Civil Aviation Administration, with the cruise operator covering all associated costs. The MSC Bellissima, carrying 4,341 passengers, departed from Keelung on Wednesday last week for Okinawa,
‘UNITED FRONT’: Some Taiwanese industry leaders had not initially planned to attend, but later agreed to do so after Beijing threatened them, a source said China hopes to rebuild its supply chain by wooing Taiwanese businesses at this year’s Cross-Strait CEO Summit (CSCS) to be held today in the Chinese city of Xiamen, a source said yesterday. This year’s summit would focus on “building a cross-strait industrial chain in the new era and promoting cross-strait economic integration and development,” promotional materials for the event said. The aim is to encourage Taiwanese businesspeople who have exited the Chinese market to return and invest there as a means of countering various technology export controls that China has been encountering, the source said. Former premier Liu Chao-shiuan (劉兆玄) and
RSS