US-Chinese security officials’ talks could pave way for Biden-Xi meeting

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• National security adviser Jake Sullivan met with China’s top security official on Monday to discuss a range of topics.
• A senior White House official said the meeting was “candid, in-depth, substantive and productive.”
• The talks could open a potential meeting between President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan met with China’s top security official, Yang Jiechi, on Monday to discuss a range of security topics in the two nations’ bilateral relationship. The talks, which were held in Luxembourg, also include Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and North Korea’s ballistic missile tests.

A senior White House official described the talks as “candid, in-depth, substantive and productive.”

The administration official, who doesn’t want to be identified, said the talks lasted nearly five hours and follows a May phone call between the two officials. In March, Sullivan and Jiechi met in person in Rome in “intense” talks that lasted at least seven hours.

The U.S. urges China, the world’s second-largest economy, not to assist Russia with its aggression in Ukraine. The U.S. and its allies have imposed rounds of coordinated sanctions on Russia making it the world’s most-sanctioned country after Iran and North Korea.

Sullivan raised concerns about China’s recent veto of a U.S. resolution at the United Nations Security Council that would have imposed new sanctions on North Korea after a series of recent ballistic missile tests.

“Jake [Sullivan] made very clear that this is an area where we believe the United States and China should be able to work together,” the official said. 

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin met with Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe a few days ago on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. Austin warned China over its aggressive actions toward Taiwan.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken described China as the “most serious long-term challenge to the international order,” even as the world grapples with Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“China is the only country with both the intent to reshape the international order and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military and technological power to do it,” Blinken said in a May 26 speech at George Washington University.

“Beijing’s vision would move us away from the universal values that have sustained so much of the world’s progress over the past 75 years,” Blinken said.

Sullivan and Jiechi’s talks could pave the way for a potential meeting between President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping. The White House hinted at the possibility of a meeting in the coming months.

Source: CNBC