Troubled US-China ties face new test in Alaska meeting
Skip to main content
  • Home
  • Economy
    • Aviation
    • Bazaar
    • Budget
    • Industry
    • NBR
    • RMG
    • Corporates
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • World+Biz
  • Sports
  • Features
    • Book Review
    • Brands
    • Earth
    • Explorer
    • Fact Check
    • Family
    • Food
    • Game Reviews
    • Good Practices
    • Habitat
    • Humour
    • In Focus
    • Luxury
    • Mode
    • Panorama
    • Pursuit
    • Wealth
    • Wellbeing
    • Wheels
  • Epaper
  • More
    • Subscribe
    • Videos
    • Thoughts
    • Splash
    • Bangladesh
    • Supplement
    • Infograph
    • Archive
    • COVID-19
    • Games
    • Long Read
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Podcast
    • Quiz
    • Tech
    • Trial By Trivia
    • Magazine
  • বাংলা
The Business Standard

Monday
January 30, 2023

Sign In
Subscribe
  • Home
  • Economy
    • Aviation
    • Bazaar
    • Budget
    • Industry
    • NBR
    • RMG
    • Corporates
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • World+Biz
  • Sports
  • Features
    • Book Review
    • Brands
    • Earth
    • Explorer
    • Fact Check
    • Family
    • Food
    • Game Reviews
    • Good Practices
    • Habitat
    • Humour
    • In Focus
    • Luxury
    • Mode
    • Panorama
    • Pursuit
    • Wealth
    • Wellbeing
    • Wheels
  • Epaper
  • More
    • Subscribe
    • Videos
    • Thoughts
    • Splash
    • Bangladesh
    • Supplement
    • Infograph
    • Archive
    • COVID-19
    • Games
    • Long Read
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Podcast
    • Quiz
    • Tech
    • Trial By Trivia
    • Magazine
  • বাংলা
MONDAY, JANUARY 30, 2023
Troubled US-China ties face new test in Alaska meeting

Global Economy

UNB/AP
18 March, 2021, 01:35 pm
Last modified: 18 March, 2021, 01:48 pm

Related News

  • Blinken starts Mideast tour as Israel-Palestinian conflict flares
  • Odds 'very high' of US military conflict with China, top Republican says
  • US four-star general warns of war with China in 2025
  • Yellen, China's Liu agree to enhance communication after 'frank exchange' - US Treasury
  • US-China officials to meet on economy, aim to ease tension

Troubled US-China ties face new test in Alaska meeting

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan will meet China’s top two diplomats, State Councilor Wang Yi and Chinese Communist Party foreign affairs chief Yang Jiechi in Anchorage, Alaska

UNB/AP
18 March, 2021, 01:35 pm
Last modified: 18 March, 2021, 01:48 pm
Flags of US and China are displayed at American International Chamber of Commerce (AICC)'s booth during China International Fair for Trade in Services in Beijing, China, May 28, 2019/ Reuters
Flags of US and China are displayed at American International Chamber of Commerce (AICC)'s booth during China International Fair for Trade in Services in Beijing, China, May 28, 2019/ Reuters

The United States and China will face a new test in their increasingly troubled relations when top officials from both countries meet in Alaska.

Ties between the world's two largest economies have been torn for years and the Biden administration has yet to signal it's ready or willing to back down on the hard-line stances taken under President Donald Trump. Nor has China signaled it's prepared to ease the pressure it has brought to bear. Thus, the stage is set for a contentious first face-to-face meeting Thursday.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan will meet China's top two diplomats, State Councilor Wang Yi and Chinese Communist Party foreign affairs chief Yang Jiechi in Anchorage, Alaska. Difficult discussions are anticipated over trade, human rights in Tibet, Hong Kong, China's western Xinjiang region, Taiwan, Chinese assertiveness in the South China Sea, and the coronavirus pandemic.

No agreements are expected.

"This really is a one-off meeting," said a senior administration official. "This is not the resumption of a particular dialogue mechanism or the beginning of a dialogue process." The official briefed reporters ahead of the meeting on the condition of anonymity.

Blinken will attend the meeting having just come from Japan and South Korea, where he and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin were promoting the Biden administration's commitment to its treaty allies in Asia.

Just a day before the meeting, Blinken announced new sanctions on officials over China's crackdown on pro-democracy advocates in Hong Kong. In response, the Chinese stepped up their rhetoric opposing US interference in domestic affairs.

China, not unexpectedly, slammed the US criticism of the move to give a pro-Beijing committee power to appoint more of Hong Kong's lawmakers, which reduces the proportion of those directly elected and ensures that only those determined to be truly loyal to Beijing are allowed to run for office — effectively shutting opposition figures out of the political process.

The imposition of sanctions "fully exposes the US side's sinister intention to interfere in China's internal affairs, disrupt Hong Kong and obstruct China's stability and development," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian told reporters at a daily briefing Wednesday.

The White House set low expectations for Blinken and Sullivan's meeting, which officials say will be an initial opportunity to address intense disagreements.

The senior administration official described the talks as a chance for the two sides for "taking stock" in the relationship. The official said the two sides would not deliver a joint statement following the meeting and no major announcements are expected to come out of the talks.

Blinken, in Japan before heading to South Korea and Alaska, said the US "will push back if necessary when China uses coercion or aggression to get its way."

"The relationship with China is a very complex one," he said. "It has adversarial aspects; it has competitive aspects; it has cooperative aspects. But the common denominator in dealing with each of those is to make sure we're approaching China from a position of strength, and that strength starts with our alliance, with our solidarity, because it's really a unique asset that we have and China doesn't."

The Chinese are not backing down.

On Wednesday at the United Nations, they blasted the US human rights record, citing what they called US failures against Covid-19 that cost "hundreds of thousands of lives," as well as racial discrimination, police brutality and an "evil past of genocide." Jiang Duan, a counselor at the Chinese mission in Geneva, voiced the criticism at the end of an examination of the US rights record at the UN Human Rights Council.

The administration has held a series of talks with Pacific allies, including Biden's virtual summit with the leaders of the Quad — Australia, India, Japan and the United States — before engaging in the high-level talks with China.

Trump had taken pride in forging what he saw as a strong relationship with Xi Jinping. But the relationship disintegrated after the coronavirus pandemic spread from the Wuhan province across the globe and unleashed a public health and economic disaster.

In addition to pushing back on China's aggressiveness in the Indo-Pacific and its human rights record, Biden faces other thorny issues in the relationship.

But so far, he's declined to rescind hundreds of billions of dollars in tariffs imposed by Trump against China or to lift bans on Chinese apps.

Biden is, however, looking for China's cooperation on pressing North Korea's Kim Jong Un over his nation's nuclear program.

Top News / World+Biz

US-China / US-China Relations / US-China trade / US-China rivalry / US-China tension / US-China Tensions / Secretary of state Antony Blinken / Antony Blinken / Alaska

Comments

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderation decisions are subjective. Published comments are readers’ own views and The Business Standard does not endorse any of the readers’ comments.

Top Stories

  • Despite downturn 3 dozen listed firms plan Tk7,500cr investment
    Despite downturn 3 dozen listed firms plan Tk7,500cr investment
  • Photo: BSS/AFP
    Bangladesh pledges to reduce corruption to get $4.5b IMF loan Tuesday
  • Mysterious resignation of SIBL chairman, addl MD
    Mysterious resignation of SIBL chairman, addl MD

MOST VIEWED

  • FILE PHOTO: The logo of the Adani Group is seen on the facade of its Corporate House on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, India, January 27, 2023. REUTERS/Amit Dave/File Photo
    Adani's nationalist rebuttal ignores accusations, says Hindenburg
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attend a meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 14, 2019. Sputnik/Alexei Nikolsky/Kremlin via REUTERS
    Putin and Saudi crown prince discuss OPEC+ cooperation to maintain price stability
  • Unilever’s global initiative Transform is working to build a platform that will help enterprises prosper during and after the pandemic. Photo: Reuters
    Unilever picks Dutch dairy chief as new CEO
  • Photo: Bloomberg
    Adani rout hits $71 billion as fight with Hindenburg intensifies
  • Photo: Collected
    Asian markets mixed as traders await rate decisions
  • The logo of the Adani Group is seen on the facade of one of its buildings on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, India, April 13, 2021. REUTERS/Amit Dave/
    Adani's $2.5 billion share sale faces crucial day after Indian rout

Related News

  • Blinken starts Mideast tour as Israel-Palestinian conflict flares
  • Odds 'very high' of US military conflict with China, top Republican says
  • US four-star general warns of war with China in 2025
  • Yellen, China's Liu agree to enhance communication after 'frank exchange' - US Treasury
  • US-China officials to meet on economy, aim to ease tension

Features

Photo: Courtesy

The Hawkers: Where minimalism meets motifs

14h | Brands
TBS illustration

Where do Shariah-compliant mutual funds stand in Bangladesh

13h | Panorama
Sketch: TBS

A subsidy war without winners

13h | Panorama
Photo: Collected

Oppo Reno 8T first look revealed!

13h | Brands

More Videos from TBS

two more factories of the country got platinum certificate.

two more factories of the country got platinum certificate.

4h | TBS Today
Iconic villains of Bollywood

Iconic villains of Bollywood

5h | TBS Entertainment
General knowledge "Gravity"

General knowledge "Gravity"

3h | Videos
Will tanks turn the tide for Ukraine?

Will tanks turn the tide for Ukraine?

4h | TBS World

Most Read

1
Picture: Collected
Bangladesh

US Embassy condemns recent incidents of visa fraud

2
Illustration: TBS
Banking

16 banks at risk of capital shortfall if top 3 borrowers default

3
Bapex calls candidates for job test 9 years after advert!
Bangladesh

Bapex calls candidates for job test 9 years after advert!

4
Photo: Collected
Splash

Hansal Mehta responds as Twitter user calls him 'shameless' for making Faraaz

5
A frozen Beyond Burger plant-based patty. Photographer: AKIRA for Bloomberg Businessweek
Bloomberg Special

Fake meat was supposed to save the world. It became just another fad

6
Representational Image
Banking

Cash-strapped Islami, Al-Arafah and National turn to Sonali Bank for costly fund

EMAIL US
[email protected]
FOLLOW US
WHATSAPP
+880 1847416158
The Business Standard
  • About Us
  • Contact us
  • Sitemap
  • Privacy Policy
  • Comment Policy
Copyright © 2023
The Business Standard All rights reserved
Technical Partner: RSI Lab

Contact Us

The Business Standard

Main Office -4/A, Eskaton Garden, Dhaka- 1000

Phone: +8801847 416158 - 59

Send Opinion articles to - [email protected]

For advertisement- sale[email protected]