US Secretary of State Blinken arrives in Beijing

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Beijing, the first visit to China by a senior US diplomat in five years. writes Reuters.

In Beijing, Blinken is expected to meet on Monday, June 19, with Foreign Minister Qin Gang, senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi and possibly Chinese President Xi Jinping. The secretary intends to “establish open and reliable channels of communication so that the strategic rivalry between the two countries does not escalate into conflict,” the agency writes. Blinken’s visit could pave the way for trips to China in the coming months by finance and trade ministers, as well as meetings between the head of state and President Joe Biden at year-end summits.

“Both sides recognize that we need top-level communication channels,” Blinken told reporters.

Before leaving for Beijing, the Secretary of State said that his visit had three main objectives: to create mechanisms for crisis management, to advance the interests of the United States and its allies by discussing relevant issues, and to explore areas of potential cooperation. Blinken also said he intends to raise the issue of Americans detained in the country on charges that Washington considers politically motivated. The parties also plan to discuss the possibility of increasing commercial flights between the two countries.

Previously due to incident with a balloon in US airspace, Secretary Blinken’s first visit to Beijing since 2018, scheduled for February 5-6, was canceled. Then he was scheduled to meet with Xi Jinping. The State Department said that under the current circumstances, the Secretary of State’s visit would be “inappropriate.”