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Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger with Chinese State Councilor Wang Yi in Beijing. Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China via AP

Economy Global Economy

Global Impact: what have the visits to Beijing by Yellen, Blinken, Kerry and Kissinger done for US-China relations?

Global Impact is a weekly curated newsletter featuring a news topic originating in China with a significant macro impact for our newsreaders around the world
In this edition, we look at the host of US officials who have made the trip to China recently, and consider what progress, if any, that has been made in the tense area of US-China relations

US-China relations

Dewey Sim

Published: 2:00pm, 31 Jul 2023

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When it comes to exchanges between the United States and China, we’ve all probably got used to their tough talk and fiery rebuttals.

But over the past weeks – even as the rival superpowers remain at loggerheads over a range of issues – it was more about the handshakes and “candid” talks as both sides look towards mending frayed ties.

For a start, July began with a visit to Beijing by US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, which included meetings with Premier Li Qiang, then-central bank governor Yi Gang and former economic tsar Liu He. She also addressed representatives of American businesses.

Yellen said competition between the United States and China is not a “winner-take-all” scenario, while Beijing urged Washington to remove economic sanctions on Chinese companies and called for joint efforts to address global challenges.

03:44

Yellen hails ‘step forward’ in US-China ties despite national security concerns

China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, then met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the sidelines of a regional meeting in Jakarta in mid-July, in what was the second time the pair had met in a month.

While both took the chance to air their concerns and advance their interests, foreign policy observers said the meeting was still useful for reviving communications and rebuilding trust between the two nations.

A few days after the meeting in Jakarta, US climate envoy John Kerry arrived in Beijing and kicked off the first face-to-face negotiations since China suspended cooperation on global warming last year in protest at Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.

He first held talks lasting several hours with China’s chief climate negotiator Xie Zhenhua, who offered hope that the two envoys could contribute to improving US-China ties.

The former US secretary of state also met with Wang, who told Washington to adopt a “rational, pragmatic and positive” policy towards China so that the world’s top-two emitters of greenhouse gases could tackle climate change together.

01:07

US climate envoy John Kerry meets China’s top diplomat Wang Yi in latest bid to repair frayed ties

“China is willing to strengthen dialogue and communication with the United States, discuss mutually beneficial cooperation, and jointly address climate change,” Wang said, in an indication that tensions were slightly easing.

Kerry also met with vice-president Han Zheng during the four-day visit but concluded his China tour with no concrete agreements. He told reporters that his engagements had been “long and detailed” and that both countries would work “intensively in the weeks ahead”.

“There are a lot of things that we very clearly agreed on after all this time. But there are also some issues that are going to have to be resolved that are going to take a little more time,” he said.

Some analysts suggested that Kerry’s influence was limited – particularly so as President Xi Jinping told officials at a national conference happening the same time that China’s path towards reducing carbon emissions “must be determined by the country itself rather than swayed by others”.

02:34

China treats ‘old friend’ Kissinger to a lavish lunch

Kerry wants China to speed up its decarbonisation efforts, but “Xi is not going to want to give any indication that the US can pressure China”, said Scott Moore, director of the Global China Programme at the University of Pennsylvania.

Kerry did not meet the Chinese leader, but another former US secretary of state, Henry Kissinger, did.

The 100-year-old, who helped paved the way for the normalisation of US-China ties, was treated to a lavish lunch and held talks with Xi at the No 5 Villa of the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse – the same place where Kissinger met Chinese leadership during his first China visit in 1971.

Xi told Kissinger that China was willing to explore ways to get along with the US “correctly” and urged the elder statesman to play a constructive role in getting relations back on track.

We never forget our old friends, nor your historic contributions to promoting the growth of China-US relations and enhancing friendship between the two peoples

Xi Jinping

“We never forget our old friends, nor your historic contributions to promoting the growth of China-US relations and enhancing friendship between the two peoples,” Xi said, referring to the way Kissinger’s initial China trip helped pave the way for President Richard Nixon’s historic visit in 1972.

Kissinger also held talks this month with defence minister Li Shangfu, who had declined earlier meetings with his American counterpart Lloyd Austin, though analysts said the meeting would not be enough to improve military ties between the two nations.

Apart from Kissinger’s surprise visit to Beijing, another major diplomatic development that made headlines in recent days was the abrupt removal of Qin Gang as China’s foreign minister.

Qin has been missing from the world stage since late June, and in a terse statement, China said it was reappointing Wang Yi as its foreign minister. Observers suggested that, even with Qin gone, his combative style of “wolf warrior” diplomacy would likely persist.

02:49

Big political questions linger after China abruptly replaces its foreign minister

There is much to watch in the coming weeks, as it appears that top-level engagement between the US and China is getting back on track.

Blinken is on his Asia-Pacific swing – which includes stops in Tonga, New Zealand and Australia – and his comments will likely be closely parsed by officials in China.

And as Washington mulled further technology curbs, China’s envoy to the US has warned that the country would “definitely” respond and that the government “cannot simply sit idly by”.

But there will likely be more handshakes, too, as US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo plans a trip to Beijing “later this summer”.

60-Second Catch-up

China replaces Qin Gang with Wang Yi, but big political questions linger after foreign minister change-up

Henry Kissinger’s ‘heart-to-heart’ talks with Xi Jinping in China planned months in advance

Opinion: Beijing’s red carpet welcome for Kissinger is a hopeful reminder of how US-China ties can be

Washington seeking narrow curbs on chokepoint technologies, commerce chief Gina Raimondo says

China says it can work with US to fight climate change as John Kerry visit ends with ‘frank conversations’

We must talk security, Wang Yi tells Antony Blinken

Envoy warns China will ‘definitely’ respond to US tech curbs, but experts say Beijing’s options are limited

Opinion: Neither the US nor China seem intent on meaningful diplomacy

Deep dives

Chinese foreign minister exit: no change to Wolf Warrior diplomacy as Wang Yi replaces Qin Gang, but there is hope of policy stability

Qin Gang’s abrupt ousting means foreign diplomats will once again be dealing with someone who is seen in Europe as ‘a known quantity, but not liked very much’
But in many parts of the world, there is a sense that personnel changes will not have a significant impact on the direction of Beijing’s policies

China’s tough-talking foreign minister Qin Gang is gone, but foreign diplomats and analysts believe the “wolf warrior” style of diplomacy he is known for will continue.

They said Wang Yi, Qin’s predecessor who has been parachuted back into the job, will be a familiar face that some governments may find reassuring, but he is seen as just as – if not more – confrontational.

Climate envoy John Kerry told US should be ‘pragmatic and positive’ towards China as he meets Beijing’s top diplomat Wang Yi

China’s foreign policy chief warns that Washington cannot separate the issue from ‘the overall environment of US-China relations’
Kerry’s visit comes as both countries, the world’s two largest carbon emitters, are battling extreme heatwaves

The United States should adopt a “rational, pragmatic and positive” policy towards China to help the two countries work together to tackle climate change, the country’s top diplomat Wang Yi told visiting climate envoy John Kerry on Tuesday.

Describing the former secretary of state as an “old friend”, Wang called for a “healthy, stable and sustainable” US-China relations.

China will determine its own path to carbon reduction: Xi Jinping

Commitment to reduce emissions is ‘unswerving’ but will not be controlled by anyone else, Chinese leader tells senior officials
The president’s remarks coincide with US special envoy on climate change John Kerry’s trip to Beijing for talks

China’s path to reducing carbon emissions should be determined by China and not controlled by anyone else, President Xi Jinping told dozens of officials, at the same time as US climate envoy John Kerry is in Beijing seeking consensus on global warming.

Xi was speaking at a two-day national conference on ecological and environmental protection that started on Monday, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported on Tuesday night.

Henry Kissinger enjoys lavish lunch in China with blessings of longevity

Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke fondly of the 100-year-old former US secretary of state at a lavish lunch
The elaborate table setting was packed with cultural significance, including symbols of good health and longevity

When an “old friend” of China comes to visit, no effort is too much to make the diplomatic heavyweight feel welcome.

That was the case for former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger on Thursday, when the Chinese government treated him to an elaborate lunch – one that was packed with cultural significance as President Xi Jinping spoke fondly of his “old friend” who celebrated his 100th birthday in May.

US-China ties loom large as Blinken readies a rapid Asia-Pacific return with tour of Tonga, New Zealand, Australia

For the third time in two months, the US secretary of state returns to the region to open a new Tonga embassy – and push New Zealand to ‘fall in line’
Talks will ‘almost inevitably centre on China’s role’, analysts say, even as Pacific nations await more ‘concrete initiatives’ from Washington

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is heading to the Asia-Pacific again this week for the third time in two months, as Washington seeks to further pressure New Zealand into toeing its China line and prove to Pacific island nations that it’s a “willing partner”.

Tonga will be Blinken’s first stop on Wednesday to open a new US embassy in capital Nuku’alofa, followed by New Zealand on Thursday for bilateral meetings and a United States-Netherlands Fifa Women’s World Cup football match, before he finishes his tour in Australia to attend an annual consultative forum alongside US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin.

How Janet Yellen’s women’s power lunch exposed China’s divide over women’s rights

US treasury secretary held several meetings on recent Beijing visit but only an all-women gathering drew ire from nationalists on social media
‘I see it all the time when I’m almost the only woman in the room,’ Yellen tells dining companions. ‘I’m sure many of you have that same experience.’

When US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen wrapped up her four-day visit to Beijing earlier this month, there was little public mention of the all-male line-up of the Chinese officials in her working meetings.

But when she hosted a lunch with a handful of Chinese women economists and entrepreneurs, China’s social media came alive, accusing the attendees of treason for meeting Yellen and labelling them “radical feminists”.

Australia can be a ‘reasonable’ moderator to ease US-China tensions: ex-foreign minister Julie Bishop

As Australia-China ties stabilise under PM Albanese, Canberra is capable of being a ‘logical’ voice if tensions came to a head over Taiwan, Bishop said
Despite Australia’s tricky balancing act, Canberra should continue to deploy soft diplomacy ‘because military conflict is very costly’, she added

Former Australian foreign minister Julie Bishop has said the country, respected as a “reasonable” nation on the world stage, can serve as moderator to the tensions between the United States and China.

Speaking at the press club in Canberra on Tuesday, Bishop said the Anthony Albanese government had “done a good job” in stabilising tensions with mainland China since coming into office in May 2022, and was capable of being a moderating voice if tensions were to spill “into anything even close to military conflict over Taiwan”.

Global Impact is a weekly curated newsletter featuring a news topic originating in China with a significant macro impact for our newsreaders around the world.