US, China top diplomats discuss key issues, show differences | World News

BEIJING (AP) — The highest American and Chinese language diplomats spoke Saturday within the first main alternate between the international locations since President Joe Biden took workplace and touched on a number of essential points which have strained their ties.

China’s prime diplomat Yang Jiechi and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken mentioned in a telephone name pressure factors within the bilateral relationship between the 2, notably the state of affairs in Xinjiang, residence to the Uighur minority whose remedy is closely criticized within the West, in addition to Hong Kong and Taiwan.

The 2 statements reaffirmed the completely different positions of the international locations, which have clashed on points from commerce to Beijing’s crackdown in Hong Kong to elevated U.S. help for self-ruled democratic Taiwan. U.S.-China relations have fallen to new lows prior to now few years, accelerated partly by former President Donald Trump beginning a commerce battle with Beijing and blaming it for the coronavirus pandemic that has killed greater than 2 million individuals globally.

Blinken mentioned the U.S. would work with allies to carry China “accountable for its efforts to threaten stability within the Indo-Pacific, together with throughout the Taiwan Strait.”

He mentioned that america will proceed to face up for human rights and democratic values, together with in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong, in keeping with the State Division assertion.

Yang mentioned that at current, “the Sino-U.S. relationship is at an important juncture.”

“The Chinese language authorities’s coverage in the direction of the U.S. has at all times maintained a excessive diploma of stability and continuity,” he was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua Information Company.

He urged Washington “to appropriate the errors revamped a time period and work with China to uphold the spirit of non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect, and win-win cooperation and deal with cooperation, handle variations in addition to promote the wholesome and secure improvement of China-U.S. relations.”

The Chinese language aspect maintained that Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Tibet have been strictly inner affairs and so they will not tolerate any international interference, Xinhua reported.

Yang known as the Taiwan challenge because the “most delicate, most necessary and core challenge between the U.S. and China.”

Below Trump, the U.S. elevated weapons gross sales to and official exchanges with the self-ruled island, which China claims as a part of its personal territory to be reunited by power if essential.

In 2020, China’s Folks Liberation Military despatched fighter jets in the direction of the island on an nearly every day foundation, stepping up a focused marketing campaign of harassment.

Yang had struck a constructive tone when he spoke earlier this week to the influential U.S. Nationwide Committee on United States-China Relations.

Acknowledging variations between the 2, he mentioned, “it’s essential to correctly management them and never enable them to intervene with the general improvement of bilateral relations.”

Blinken particularly known as on China to sentence the navy coup in Myanmar. Yang, in response, emphasised that the worldwide neighborhood ought to create a very good exterior atmosphere for the correct settlement of the Myanmar challenge.

China has invested billions of {dollars} in Myanmar mines, oil and fuel pipelines and different infrastructure and is its greatest buying and selling companion.

Copyright 2021 The Related Press. All rights reserved. This materials might not be revealed, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed with out permission.