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China, US continue to wrangle over protocol after Sherman talks
- Washington puts the focus on deputy secretary of state’s meeting with the Chinese foreign minister
- But Beijing’s line is that she was hosted by an official at a lower ranking during visit to Tianjin
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Beijing and Washington have continued to wrangle over protocol following a visit to China by America’s No 2 diplomat, with the two sides presenting different versions of the high-level talks.
The US statement on deputy secretary of state Wendy Sherman’s trip to the northern city of Tianjin focused on Monday’s meeting with Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
But China’s line, delivered via state media, was that Sherman had been hosted by an official at a lower ranking – foreign vice-minister Xie Feng.
Tuesday’s analysis on Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said the US had proposed Sherman’s trip in May, and that the talks with Wang – which took place after her meeting with Xie – were arranged out of courtesy. It pointed to Xie briefing the media after the pair met, saying he had handed Sherman Beijing’s list of grievances and red line issues in their formal talks.
The US State Department named only Foreign Minister Wang in its readout, with no mention of any other Chinese officials involved in the talks – in line with a statement last week on Sherman’s itinerary.
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