China subtly mocked Blinken at the beginning of his official visit to Beijing

How was the first day of an American diplomat in China

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Beijing early Sunday morning for an official two-day visit. Over the past five years, China has not been visited by a single high-ranking American diplomat, and relations between the countries have deteriorated sharply during this time. On the very first day, Blinken met with his Chinese colleague Qin Gan. The first minutes of the meeting were difficult for Blinken.

Anthony Blinken’s visit to Beijing, which was postponed in February and seemed almost impossible, did happen. Having reached the capital of China early in the morning, the American diplomat, literally gritting his teeth and almost without endowing the guests of the meeting with a smile, went down the stairs of the plane. Internet users immediately began to savor the details. So, many noticed that the Chinese gave Blinken a more than modest reception: the absence of motorcades, songs and dances. Yes, and getting off the plane, Blinken still had to cross the red line, which turned out to be exactly in the way of the diplomat. Many will say an accident, but when dealing with China, one must look for symbols.

The event is truly significant. Blinken is the first secretary of state to visit China in the past five years. Since Joe Biden took office as president of America, not one of the highest-ranking officials in the United States has reached the PRC.

The first point of Blinken’s two-day stay in Beijing was a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang. The meeting of diplomats was held at the Diaoyutai State Residence. The Reuters agency also noticed some mockery from the host side here. The Chinese diplomat met Blinken and his group at the door of the building, and not inside, as is customary. A little later, they exchanged a couple of insignificant phrases about the past trip from Washington to Beijing, shook hands, took pictures under the flags of the United States and China, and then headed to the conference room without giving reporters a single comment.

Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hua Chunying only wrote on her Twitter page: “I hope this meeting will help bring Sino-US relations back to what the two presidents agreed on in Bali.”

The main point of the agreement between the two leaders in November was the restoration of the cracked relationship. The main purpose of Anthony Blinken’s trip was also the resuscitation of bilateral contacts. The diplomat’s trip is expected to pave the way for more bilateral meetings in the coming months, including possible rendezvous between US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo with Chinese counterparts. It could also set the stage for Xi and Biden to meet at multilateral summits later in the year.

An equally significant section of the talks will be security issues, which will undoubtedly touch upon the Taiwan issue, the creation of military bases in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, and the conflict in Ukraine. Blinken also traveled to Beijing with the express purpose of discussing global issues on which the two countries may have common interests, including climate change and economic stability around the world.

Among the topics that the diplomat is likely to discuss during his trip is the potential increase in commercial flights between the two countries.

But even the Americans themselves did not believe in the plans of the Americans, preparing everyone in advance for the fact that there would be no breakthroughs. China also has a number of grievances that it has expressed before and will express during the two-day visit of an American diplomat. Not to mention that Beijing will continue to demand that Washington not interfere in the affairs of Taiwan (this amounts to interference in the internal affairs of the PRC), China will express deep disappointment with the US efforts to limit the country’s access to advanced semiconductor chips and manufacturing equipment. Unlike the United States, the PRC sincerely hopes for the practical results of the meetings, expecting more sincerity and respect from Washington. Many Chinese experts saw this visit as a good signal that could become a “window of opportunity” to save bilateral relations.

In addition to Blinken’s meeting with Qin Gang, talks are also scheduled for Monday with Wang Yi, head of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee. Blinken will meet with American exchange students and business leaders at a round table.

However, the main intrigue remains – whether the American diplomat will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Given the lowest level of relations between countries in recent decades, neither the American nor the Chinese side has any hope for this. Although how to know. On Friday, Bill Gates did it. However, remembering the reception China prepared for Blinken, doubts remain about the prospects for a meeting between the secretary of state and the leader of the host country. Given that after the meeting with Qin Gang, the parties did not give any final comments, Blinken’s chances are fading.