‘Meet China halfway’: Foreign Minister Qin Gang and US envoy Nicholas Burns break ‘spy balloon’ diplomatic ice

Qin tells Nicholas Burns that the top priority is to stabilise relations between the two countries
The minister is the highest-ranking Chinese official known to have met a US representative since the balloon sent tensions soaring

US-China relations

Kawala Xie

Published: 8:00pm, 8 May 2023

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In his first public meeting with a US official since the “spy balloon” saga, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang said the top priority for the two countries is to prevent a “downward spiral” in US-China relations.

Qin told US ambassador to China Nicholas Burns in Beijing on Monday that China and the United States should maintain this bottom line and avoid further incidents.

“The top priority is to stabilise China-US relations, avoid a downward spiral, and prevent accidents between China and the United States. This should be the most basic consensus and a bottom line for countries to keep, especially two major countries,” he said.

“[We] hope the US will reflect deeply, meet China halfway, and push China-US relations out of the predicament and back on track.”

Qin added that “a series of wrongful rhetoric and actions” by the US had undermined the “important consensus” reached between presidents Xi Jinping and Joe Biden in Bali last year, disrupting dialogue and cooperation between the two countries.

After the meeting, Burns said in a tweet: “We discussed challenges in the US-China relationship and the necessity of stabilising ties and expanding high-level communication.”

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China says US balloons flew over Xinjiang, Tibet as diplomatic row deepens

Qin is the highest-ranking Chinese official known to have met a US representative since Washington accused Beijing of using a balloon to spy on the United States in February.

The saga prompted US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to postpone a planned trip to China indefinitely, undermining the Biden-Xi pledge to have senior officials maintain communication on issues like climate change and global economy stability.

The pledge in Bali on the sidelines of the Group of 20 meeting in Bali was an attempt to revive communication largely suspended since former US House speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August.

Now there are signs that this could be happening.

US climate envoy John Kerry said last week that China had invited him to visit “in the near term” for climate talks. Blinken has also said he is hopeful that his China trip can be rescheduled this year.

In addition, the Pentagon is reportedly looking to set up a meeting between Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu during the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore next month.

China has not confirmed any of these prospective talks.

However, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce has confirmed that commerce officials from both countries held talks in Beijing last month. And US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen have said they intend to visit China soon.

03:10

US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy meets Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, despite Beijing’s warnings

During his talks with Burns, Qin touched on Taiwan, warning the US not to cross China’s “red line” and to “correctly handle” the Taiwan issue.

Last month, Pelosi’s successor, Kevin McCarthy, hosted Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen in California, prompting Beijing to conduct another round of military drills around the island.

Qin also urged Washington to stop its containment against China.

“[The US] cannot talk about communication on the one hand, and keep suppressing and containing China on the other,” he said, adding the US should correct its perception of China and return to rationality.

The US has been lobbying allies not to sell advanced technology to China. Japan and the Netherlands are set to limit semiconductor exports to China, while South Korea was reportedly told by the US not to fill chip supply shortfalls in China if Beijing banned US company Micron Technology.