All the evidence of dialogue (and scazzi) between the US and China
How did the summit between the American Blinken and the Chinese Wang at the G20 in Indonesia go? Marco Orioles's article
The bilateral expected bilateral meeting between the heads of diplomacy of the USA and China, held yesterday on the island of Bali, in Indonesia, at the end of the G20 Foreign Ministerial, lasted five hours, including lunch.
A frank comparison
Both Antony Blinken and Wang Yi, Reuters reports, called an exchange of views "frank" – the first in person since last October – which obviously touched on the war in Ukraine and extended to other topics such as Taiwan, Hong Kong and American presence in the Indo-Pacific region.
Blinken's outstretched hand
"Despite the complexities of our report," said the US Secretary of State in the closing press conference, "I can say with some confidence that our delegations have found today's discussions useful, frank and constructive".
"We are committed, Blinken added," to managing this relationship and this competition responsibly, as the world expects us to do. "
Distances on Ukraine
Also in consideration of the work of the G20, during which attempts were made in vain to create a sanitary cordon around Russia and its Foreign Minister Sergej Lavrov, Blinken tried to nail China to its responsibilities.
"We are concerned about the alignment of the People's Republic of China with Russia," said the Secretary thinking of the unlimited partnership that Vladimir Putin and XI Jinping vowed to cultivate just before the start of hostilities in Ukraine.
"I tried to make it clear to the Councilor of State," Blinken said, thinking of China's apparent neutral position in the conflict, "that this is indeed the time we all must unite" in condemning the invasion.
“I don't think”, was the Minister's consideration, “that China is in fact behaving in a way that indicates neutrality. He supported Russia at the UN. It is continuing to do so. And it has amplified Russian propaganda ”from the early stages of the war.
The Taiwan knot
Another sore point addressed in the meeting concerned Taiwan. Here Blinken, reports NPR , accused the counterpart of indulging in "a rhetoric and provocative activities", underlining the "vital importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait".
In comparison, according to the report of the South China Morning Post , there was also room for canonical recriminations about the situation in Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet.
Wang's version
Wang Yi focused his attention on the need to restore a glimmer of normality in a bilateral relationship that has long been tense and complex.
The Councilor has in particular accused the US, according to what the state agency Xinhua reported in a statement referenced by the South China Morning Post , of not having yet normalized relations after the tensions created by the previous administration of Donald Trump, and of not having honored the commitment to improve relations made during the virtual summit between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping last November.
China and the US, Wang said, “are two great countries, so it is necessary for them to have normal exchanges… we need to work together to ensure that this relationship continues along the right track”.
The Chinese accusations
Without discounting, the Minister accused the US of improperly considering China as a threat, stating that if "this threat theory is allowed to develop further, US policy towards China would enter a dead end from which it could no longer escape. ".
Recovering a very popular expression in communist power circles, Wang also pointed out that America "suffers from synophobia".
The requests to the USA
As reported by the South China Morning Post , Wang presented Blinken with a list of preparatory requests for mending. Although the details are not known, as early as July last year China presented the US with a list of its concerns and possible remedies, including the end of restrictions on some Communist Party leaders and the demand for more equal treatment of Chinese citizens residing in the USA.
According to Reuters , Wang would also have asked for the cancellation of Trumpian duties on Chinese goods, as the Biden administration seems to intend to do soon , and the end of the unilateral US sanctions on Chinese companies.
No breakthroughs on Ukraine and Taiwan
However, no progress has been made on the war front in Ukraine. Rather, the Chinese minister took advantage of the opportunity to reiterate the Chinese vision of a crisis in which, unlike Western thought, the responsibilities are reversed. According to Wang, in fact, "considering one's own safety above the safety of others and consolidating military blocs will only divide the interactional community and make oneself less safe".
Finally, with regard to Taiwan, China's position remains the same and corresponds to the request to stop Washington's interference on an issue that China considers to be of vital importance.
"The US" are the words chosen by Wang, "must not underestimate the firm determination of the Chinese people to defend their territorial sovereignty, and must not commit subversive mistakes that ruin the peace in the Taiwan Strait". America is therefore urged, Reuters reports in another launch dedicated to the meeting, not to spread the wrong messages about the "independence of Taiwan".
A dialogue that continues
Despite the elements of discord that also emerged during this bilateral event, China and the US keep the channels of dialogue open. The will of both superpowers to minimize the damage to a relationship that has reached the tone of open hostility in recent years is evident.
However, distances remain on a series of burning issues such as Taiwan, human rights and of course the war in Ukraine which, at this moment, represents the diplomatic priority for Washington.
The frank confrontation between Wang and Blinken highlighted how long the road to go before a full normalization of relations between the US and China is reached, even if both sides deny the will to establish a cold war climate that would harm to both.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/mondo/usa-cina-incontro-blinken-wang-g20/ on Sun, 10 Jul 2022 06:09:50 +0000.