Editorial | Despite the sniping, Alaska talks show that China and US do seek more constructive relations
- Once the posturing and rhetoric subsided, both sides rightly realised that the way forward for now lies in finding common ground and exploring the possibility of working together on issues of shared interest
Diplomatic niceties were never going to be a hallmark of the first high-level meeting of Chinese and American officials since Joe Biden became United States president. The ill-tempered start to the two days of talks in Anchorage, with rhetorical sniping and accusations, was to be expected after four years of the disruptive policies of Donald Trump’s administration.
Nor was a breakthrough likely, with so many disputes and differences. But that does not mean the coming together of the nations’ most senior foreign policy representatives was a failure; that they were willing to sit at the same table and constructively lay out grievances and identify where they were able to work together proves Beijing and Washington seek more constructive relations.
Ties have not been so broken since formal diplomatic relations were established in 1979. That was evident in the undiplomatic language used by both sides before the talks began.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said his country would not shy away from contentious issues like Xinjiang, Hong Kong, Taiwan, cyberattacks and economic coercion that he claimed were a threat to global stability.
Politburo member Yang Jiechi, China’s top diplomat and President Xi Jinping’s most senior foreign policy adviser, hit back by accusing Washington of violating human rights in its own country and around the world.
But such posturing and rhetoric for the benefit of domestic audiences subsided as talks began, the attention turning to laying out positions. For Beijing, there are its “red lines”, most of which Blinken had articulated in his opening remarks. These are China’s non-negotiable points and Washington well knows that. Still, just before the talks, the US State Department symbolically announced that 24 Chinese and Hong Kong officials had been sanctioned over their handling of the city.
Anti-Chinese sentiment runs deep in the US and there is no likelihood under Biden that trade and technology measures imposed by Trump are going to be eased soon.
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