Start of US-China Foreign Ministers Meeting... Discussion on 'Guardrails' to Prevent Clashes

Blinken and Qin Gang Meet in Beijing to Discuss Semiconductor Supply Chain and Conflict Issues

The United States and China held a foreign ministers' meeting in Beijing on the 18th to discuss bilateral issues including the Taiwan matter.

U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken arrived in Beijing, China, on the 18th and is seen disembarking from his official aircraft.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken and Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang held talks from 2:35 p.m. local time at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing. This was their first face-to-face meeting since both assumed their respective foreign minister positions. The two were seen shaking hands in front of the national flags of both countries inside the 12th pavilion of the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, the venue of the talks, before immediately moving into the meeting room.

Amid the expanding and deepening strategic competition between the U.S. and China, the foreign ministers' meeting is presumed to have included discussions on so-called "guardrails" to prevent conflicts between the two countries from escalating into armed clashes. Ministers Blinken and Qin are also expected to exchange views on their respective positions regarding the rising tensions in the Taiwan Strait and their mutual "red lines." Furthermore, the two sides are anticipated to engage in a tense debate over "de-risking," a term proposed by the U.S. to replace "decoupling"?which refers to excluding China from critical industrial supply chains such as semiconductors?meaning the reduction of economic and trade dependence on China.

In addition to the two ministers, the U.S. delegation included Daniel Kritenbrink, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs; Sarah Barron, Senior Director for China and Taiwan at the White House National Security Council (NSC); and Nicholas Burns, U.S. Ambassador to China. The Chinese side was represented by Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu, Foreign Ministry Executive Vice Minister Hua Chunying, Director of the Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs Yang Tao, among others, with eight members from each side attending.

Secretary Blinken visited China for the first time in five years since former Secretary Mike Pompeo in 2018. He was originally scheduled to visit in early February but postponed the trip due to the sudden emergence of the U.S.-China "spy balloon" conflict (which China claims was a scientific research airship) just before his departure.

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