Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan recently held talks in Bangkok to discuss the state of China-U.S. relations. Both sides emphasized the importance of maintaining contact and addressing sensitive issues. Wang Yi specifically highlighted Taiwan independence as the greatest threat to Sino-U.S. ties.
The meeting took place two months after the meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. The relationship between China and the United States had a rocky start in 2023 but had more frequent engagements in the second half of the year to stabilize ties, especially with Taiwan’s upcoming presidential transition in May and the potential tensions surrounding the 2024 U.S. election campaign.
The Chinese economy‘s struggles may also have played a role in China’s efforts to improve relations with the United States. Wang and Sullivan agreed to handle important issues in a proper and sensitive manner. They also expressed the need for President Xi and President Biden to maintain regular contact and strategic guidance for bilateral relations through existing channels.
During the meeting in San Francisco, Xi and Biden agreed to open a presidential hotline, resume military-to-military communications, and collaborate on combating fentanyl production. However, the issue of Taiwan remained a point of contention. China claims Taiwan as a part of its territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under its control. Taiwan strongly rejects China’s sovereignty claims and believes that its future should be determined by its own people.
This meeting between Wang Yi and Jake Sullivan is the latest in a series of engagements aimed at lowering tensions. Wang emphasized the importance of treating each other as equals, respecting core interests, and establishing mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation. He stated that Taiwan is China’s internal affair and that a recent election there does not change the fact that Taiwan is a part of China.
China criticized the United States for causing trouble and provocation after the U.S. Navy sailed a warship through the waters separating China and Taiwan since the election. While the United States is Taiwan’s biggest ally and arms supplier, it acknowledges China’s position on the one China policy.
Wang Yi stressed that Taiwan independence poses the biggest risk to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and is also the biggest challenge to China-U.S. relations. He also highlighted the importance of legitimate and reasonable national security concerns for all countries.
Both sides recognized the progress made in resuming military-to-military communication and stressed the necessity of preventing competition between the two countries from escalating into conflict or confrontation.
The China-U.S. intergovernmental dialogue mechanism on artificial intelligence will hold its first meeting this spring, marking another step toward cooperation between the two nations.
In summary, the talks between Wang Yi and Jake Sullivan aimed to address various issues impacting China-U.S. relations, with a particular emphasis on the Taiwan issue. Both sides expressed the need for regular contact and proper handling of important and sensitive matters to promote mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation. The relationship between the two nations is crucial to achieving stability and furthering dialogue on subjects like artificial intelligence.
