Progress Made During Talks

Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted visiting U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken for a key meeting on Monday, where the two sides pledged to stabilize deteriorating ties. Xi pronounced himself satisfied with the progress made during talks in Beijing. But, Blinken told media, China refused to resume military-to-military communications, a U.S. priority.

Resolving Disagreements

It remains to be seen whether the two countries can resolve their most important disagreements, many of which have international financial, security and stability implications. The two sides expressed a willingness to hold more talks, but there was little indication that either is prepared to bend from its positions on issues including trade, Taiwan, human rights conditions in China and Hong Kong, Chinese military assertiveness in the South China Sea, and Russia’s war in Ukraine.

U.S. Priorities

Blinken said later that the U.S. set limited objectives for the trip and achieved them. Blinken added that he had raised the issue of military-to-military communications “repeatedly.” “It is absolutely vital that we have these kinds of communications,” he said. “This is something we’re going to keep working on.” The U.S. has said that, since 2021, China has declined or failed to respond to over a dozen requests from the Department of Defense for top-level dialogues.

Agreement Reached

According to a transcript of the meeting with Blinken, Xi pronounced himself pleased with the outcome of Blinken’s earlier meetings with two top Chinese diplomats and said the two countries had agreed to resume a program of understandings that he and President Joe Biden agreed to at a meeting in Bali last year. That agenda had been thrown into jeopardy in recent months, notably after the U.S. shot down a Chinese surveillance balloon over its airspace in February, and amid escalated military activity in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea. Combined with disputes over human rights, trade and opiate production, the list of problem areas is daunting.

Managing the Relationship

Despite his presence in China, Blinken and other U.S. officials had played down the prospects for any significant breakthroughs on the most vexing issues facing the planet’s two largest economies. Instead, these officials have emphasized the importance of the two countries establishing and maintaining better lines of communication. Blinken is the highest-level U.S. official to visit China since President Joe Biden took office, and the first secretary of state to make the trip in five years. His visit is expected to usher in a new round of visits by senior U.S. and Chinese officials, possibly including a meeting between Xi and Biden in the coming months.

Choice Between Dialogue or Confrontation

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote in a statement that Blinken’s visit “coincides with a critical juncture in China-U.S. relations, and it is necessary to make a choice between dialogue or confrontation, cooperation or conflict,” and blamed the “U.S. side’s erroneous perception of China, leading to incorrect policies towards China” for the current “low point” in relations.