Immediately after the meeting, it was announced that China’s Foreign Minister Qin will travel to Washington for further talks. The visit takes place at an “opportunity that suits both parties”, writes the US State Department in a statement.
Thus, the diplomatic ice between the two great powers is broken.
Blinken’s planned trip to Beijing in February was canceled with a few days’ notice after the United States shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon over American soil. His visit now is the first by a top US diplomat since 2018.
China’s foreign minister said immediately after the meeting that the relationship between Beijing and Washington is “at its lowest point” since 1979, writes AFP.
The talks lasted over seven and a half hours, about an hour longer than planned. Conversations were also held during the dinner served at the official Chinese Diaoyutai Guest House, surrounded by gardens and walls in central Beijing.
Open-minded conversations
The talks were held behind closed doors, but diplomats with access to the discussions say that the two foreign ministers were relatively outspoken and that they repeatedly left the agreed talking points.
Issues that have put the US and China on a direct diplomatic collision course in recent years remain; the dividing lines were evident when the two delegations reported from the meeting.
Foreign Minister Qin said the issue of Taiwan “poses the biggest threat” in the relationship between China and the United States, according to state-run Chinese television channel CCTV.
One of the achievements of the meeting was a desire to increase the number of civilian passenger aircraft flights between the two countries. Many flights have been grounded since the corona pandemic.
Increased communication?
Blinken and Qin had a longer conversation on Sunday, followed by a working dinner.
On Monday, Blinken has booked a meeting with top diplomat Wang Yi. On the same day, he may also meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, according to US officials.
Both the American and Chinese sides have expressed a desire for conflict prevention and increased communication between the countries.