China’s top diplomat takes a hard line on the first call with the new US Secretary of State

China’s top diplomat takes a hard line on the first call with the new US Secretary of State

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Yang Jiechi, the main foreign policy advisor to Chinese leader Xi Jinping, told Blinken during Friday’s conference call that the US should “correct recent mistakes and work with China to promote the healthy and stable development of China-China relations” USA, maintaining the spirit of non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation “, according to a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China.

Yang emphasized that both sides must respect the other’s central interests, as well as the political systems and development paths of their own choosing, the statement said.

“Each side must focus on taking care of its own internal affairs. China will remain firmly on the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics and no one can prevent the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” said Yang.

Relations between Washington and Beijing under former U.S. President Donald Trump have often been turbulent, with clashes over issues related to trade, technology, regional security and human rights. Recent statements by President Joe Biden’s new administration suggest there will be little resistance. In a speech on Thursday, Biden described China as the “most serious competitor” in the United States and outlined plans to address Beijing’s “attack on human rights, intellectual property and global governance”.

During the call on Friday, Yang highlighted several important sources of continued tension between the two countries, including Taiwan.

Beijing claims total sovereignty over Taiwan, a democratic island of almost 24 million people, despite the fact that the two sides have been governed separately for more than seven decades.

Beijing has stepped up military activity around Taiwan since Biden took office, sending combat aircraft, including H-6K bombers, to Taiwan’s air defense identification zone on several occasions, in what was seen as a direct message to the new US government that China will not give in to its claims of sovereignty over the island.

On Thursday, the United States Navy sent a guided-missile destroyer across the Taiwan Strait, the first time that a US warship has crossed the waterway that separates China from Taiwan during the Biden government.
Biden appears to be in tune with China's allies

Yang also warned Blinken that issues related to Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet are China’s internal affairs and that the country would not tolerate any outside interference.

The Trump administration has determined that China is committing genocide against Uighur Muslims and ethnic and religious minority groups in Xinjiang, a designation that Blinken said he agreed with.

The US State Department previously estimated that up to two million Uighurs, as well as members of other Muslim minority groups, were detained in a wide network of internment camps in the region.

According to a U.S. State Department that read the call on Friday, Blinken emphasized that the US would continue to defend human rights and democratic values, including in Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong, and pressured China to join the international community in condemning the military coup in Myanmar.
Blinken also reaffirmed that the United States will work together with its allies and partners to hold China accountable for its “efforts to threaten stability in the Indo-Pacific, including across the Taiwan Strait,” the US statement said.

Jennifer Hansler of CNN contributed to this report.

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