During a rare meeting on Saturday, the chiefs of Chinese and American diplomacy spoke of the thorny subjects of Taiwan and the war in Ukraine.
Le Monde with AFP
Discussions “useful, frank and constructive”, according to the American Secretary of State, Antony Blinken. The head of American diplomacy spoke with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, for almost five hours, the day after a meeting of the leaders of diplomacy of the group of twenty (G20), in Bali, in Indonesia. This is their first meeting since October.
“Despite the complexity of our relationships, I can say with a certain confidence that our delegations have found the discussions of today useful, frank and constructive,” said Mr. Blinken.
“Increasingly provocative activities” with regard to Taiwan
“I have expressed profound concerns of the United States concerning rhetoric and the increasingly provocative activities of Beijing with regard to Taiwan and the vital importance of peace and stability In the Taiwan Strait, “said Blinken, however. The United States is concerned about the increased military pressure of Beijing in recent years against Taiwan, a democratic island that China considers a part of its territory and has sworn to resume one day.
m. Blinken also asked his Chinese counterpart to distance himself from Moscow and to condemn “the assault” Russian against Ukraine. “This is really the moment when we all have to get up, as did the countries of the G20 one after the other, to condemn the attack and demand, among other things, that Russia authorizes access to foodstuffs Blocked in Ukraine, “he pleaded.
The American Secretary of State says he has received “no sign” of cooperation from Russia. The day before, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergei Lavrov, slammed the door of the meeting with his G20 counterparts after having suffered a torrent of criticism concerning the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
“Mutual respect”
At the beginning of this morning of discussions followed by a working lunch, MM. Blinken and Wang played the card of appeasement. “In a relationship as complex and important as that which exists between the United States and China, there are a lot to discuss,” said Blinken, adding that he was waiting “impatiently a productive and constructive conversation “, While Mr. Wang and himself posed in front of the American and Chinese flags in a Bali hotel.
“China and the United States are two Country, it is therefore necessary for the two countries to maintain normal exchanges, “replied Mr. Wang. “We have to work together to ensure that this relationship continues to progress on the right track,” he added, calling for “mutual respect”.
The exchange between MM. Wang and Blinken must also prepare a videoconferencing meeting between the American and Chinese presidents in the coming weeks. Meetings between the main defense, finance and national security officials of the two countries have also taken place in the past two months.