Top U.S. and Chinese officials are set to hold talks next week in the first high-level in-person meeting between the two powers since President Biden took office, after months of deteriorating ties.
The meeting between Secretary of State Antony Blinken, national security adviser Jake Sullivan and their Chinese counterparts will be held in Alaska, is tentatively set for March 18 and 19, and will give each side time to lay out their priorities and cover a range of divisive issues, U.S. officials said Wednesday.
“Pretty simple: This is an important opportunity for us to lay out in very frank terms the many concerns we have with Beijing’s actions and behavior that are challenging the security, the prosperity and the values of the United States,” Mr. Blinken told the House Foreign Affairs Committee. He said the talks would also explore areas for cooperation.
Topics will include the Covid-19 pandemic, climate change, and issues of disagreement including China’s stance on Hong Kong and pressure on Taiwan, and the “undeclared economic embargoes” China has placed on Australia, a senior administration official said. The U.S. will also discuss Chinese practices seen as damaging to American workers and farmers, as well as intellectual property theft, forced technology transfer and human rights, the official said. The Chinese Embassy didn’t respond to a request for comment. Beijing has been requesting a meeting between high-ranking officials since December, reaching out to the Biden administration after relations spiraled down under former President Donald Trump.