Dharamshala, 31st October: In only their second face-to-face meeting, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Rome on Sunday, raising concerns about human rights. Tensions between the two nations are at an all-time high.
In a statement, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said Blinken expressed objections to Chinese acts “that run counter to our values and interests… including actions related to human rights, Xinjiang, Tibet, Hong Kong, the East, and South China Seas, and Taiwan.”
The encounter in Rome, where both diplomats were attending the G20 conference, is the first between Blinken and Wang since a tumultuous meeting in Alaska in March, during which the Chinese group chastised the American delegation in front of the television cameras.
On a variety of fronts, including trade, human rights, Taiwan, and the Covid-19 pandemic, tensions are high between the world’s two largest economies. US President Joe Biden has continued to pursue a tough trade stance against China, similar to that of his predecessor Donald Trump, whose bombastic attitude heightened tensions.
In recent months, tensions have also risen in Taiwan. China claims the self-governing, US-allied island as its own and promises to reclaim it one day, if necessary by force. Washington revealed earlier this month that a limited number of US troops are on the island to assist with training.
Blinken asked for Taiwan’s involvement in UN organizations to be expanded on Tuesday, despite Beijing’s insistence that it has no place on the world’s diplomatic stage. Biden has also chastised Beijing for its threats to Taiwan. He warned earlier this month that the US was prepared to protect the island against a Chinese invasion, but the White House soon took back those remarks in the face of Beijing’s warnings, continuing a policy of ambiguity on whether it would intervene militarily if China invaded.