"US-China Summit Imminent... Senior Officials from Both Countries to Meet in Tianjin Next Week"

SCMP Report... High-Level Meeting Between Diplomatic Authorities of Both Countries
"Possible Preparatory Work for a Summit"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suhwan] Reports have emerged that Wendy Sherman, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, and Xie Feng, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister, are expected to meet next week in Tianjin, China.

The Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on the 14th, citing sources, that this meeting is likely a preparatory step for a U.S.-China summit.

SCMP noted that this will be the first direct face-to-face meeting between senior U.S. and Chinese officials since the Alaska talks in March, where officials from both countries clashed intensely. The two are expected to explore the possibility of a meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

SCMP also reported that President Biden is scheduled to attend an emergency virtual summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) on the 16th, but it is unknown whether he plans to engage in dialogue with President Xi during the meeting.

Meanwhile, some speculate that the two leaders might hold talks at the upcoming G20 summit in Rome this October.

The newspaper further interpreted Sherman’s visit to China as providing a "rare opportunity to engage ahead of the next phase of the Biden administration’s China policy."

Currently, Kurt Campbell, the White House National Security Council (NSC) Indo-Pacific Coordinator and Biden’s "Asia point man," is reportedly in the final stages of a review process that will advise the future policy direction of the U.S. administration.

A source said, "After Campbell’s review, it will be time for both sides to reconnect and gauge where bilateral relations are headed."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The source also mentioned that Qin Gang, Vice Foreign Minister of China and known as the successor to Cui Tiankai, China’s Ambassador to the U.S., is expected to depart for Washington at the end of this month after receiving a handover from Ambassador Cui, who is nearing the end of his COVID-19 quarantine.

The possibility of a summit between the two countries comes amid ongoing U.S.-China tensions spanning trade, technology, the South China Sea, Taiwan, and the Xinjiang region.

On the 13th (local time), the U.S. government strongly warned its companies to disengage from transactions and investments linked to forced labor and human rights abuses in Xinjiang. On the same day, Bloomberg reported that the U.S. government plans to caution American companies operating in Hong Kong this week to be wary of business environment risks stemming from Chinese government interference and regulations.

Earlier, on the 11th, Secretary Blinken issued a statement commemorating the fifth anniversary of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruling on the South China Sea, stating, "There is no place where a rules-based maritime order is more threatened than in the South China Sea," criticizing China for continuing to "pressure and intimidate Southeast Asian coastal states, threatening freedom of navigation in this critical global waterway."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.