Senior US delegation to visit China in coming days

The visit next week will follow up on US President Joe Biden’s recent talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping

Preparations will also be made for US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s scheduled visit early next year

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US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink is part of the delegation scheduled to visit China. Photo: AFP

Published: 6:50am, 11 Dec 2022Updated: 6:53am, 11 Dec 2022

The US will send a high-level delegation to China next week, following up on President Joe Biden’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping last month at the G20 meeting in Indonesia. The move is a bid to keep channels of communication open, the US State Department said in a statement, and avoid mishaps as tension between the two giants has intensified.

The visit by Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink and National Security Council Senior Director for China and Taiwan Laura Rosenberger aims to “continue responsibly managing the competition between our two countries and to explore potential areas of cooperation”, the agency said in a statement. It will also pave the way for a planned trip by Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China early next year.

As part of their December 11-14 Asian swing, the two senior officials also plan to visit South Korea and Japan to hold consultations on a “range of regional and bilateral issues,” the State Department said without elaborating.

Xi and Biden sought to dial down tensions during their meeting in Indonesia after Beijing launched a severe military response to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in early August. Pelosi is third in line to the US president.

National Security Council Senior Director for China and Taiwan Laura Rosenberger will also be part of the delegation. Photo: CQ Roll Call

In the following days, the People’s Liberation Army fired missiles into Japan’s exclusive economic zone, sent 22 jet fighters across the median line between Taiwan and the mainland, and deployed 100 fighters and bombers near the island.

China views self-governing Taiwan as a breakaway province to be reunited by force if necessary. Few countries, including the US, recognise the island as an independent state. But Washington is required by law to support Taiwan’s military defence capability. On Tuesday, the Pentagon approved a US$430 million sale of military aircraft parts to Taipei.