Blinken dials Qin ahead of expected visit to Beijing; discusses ways to avoid 'miscalculation and conflict'

Ahead of his planned visit to China to cool down tensions, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken Wednesday spoke to his Chinese counterpart Qin Gang by phone during which they discussed the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the relationship to avoid "miscalculation and conflict".

Blinken, who is reportedly planning to visit Beijing, said he discussed with Qin efforts by the two countries to maintain open channels of communication between two countries on bilateral and global issues.

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"Spoke tonight with PRC State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang by phone. Discussed ongoing efforts to maintain open channels of communication as well as bilateral and global issues,” Blinken said in a tweet.

His planned visit in February was cancelled after the US shot down a Chinese spy balloon flying over its airspace.

On Wednesday, US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement that Secretary Blinken “discussed the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to responsibly manage the US-PRC relationship to avoid miscalculation and conflict, [and] addressed a range of bilateral and global issues”.

He said Blinken also made clear that the US would continue to use diplomatic engagements to raise areas of concern as well as areas of potential cooperation.

For his part, Qin told Blinken that the US should respect China's position on the Taiwan question, stop interfering in China's internal affairs and stop undermining China's sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition.

China views Taiwan as a breakaway province. Beijing has not ruled out the possible use of force to reunify the self-ruled island with the mainland.

Qin expounded on China's solemn positions on the Taiwan question and other core concerns, an official statement here said.

Since the beginning of this year, Qin said, China-US relations have encountered new difficulties and challenges, for which it is crystal clear who is responsible.

China always views and handles China-US relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation proposed by President Xi Jinping, he said.

He urged Washington to take concrete actions to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state at the G20 Summit in Bali in 2022 and honour the relevant commitments it has made.

Blinken planned to visit Beijing reportedly this Sunday, which comes about a month following US President Joe Biden’s remarks that he expected ties with China to improve “very shortly”.

Biden also allayed China’s concerns over US plans to decouple from the Chinese economy.

"We're not looking to decouple from China. We're looking to de-risk and diversify our relationship with China," Biden said during the G7 summit in Japan last month.

Ahead of Blinken’s visit, Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant US secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, visited Beijing last week and held talks with his counterparts here to prepare the ground.

Also, US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo met her Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao in May in Washington to discuss trade.

Coinciding with Qin-Blinken talks, some of the Chinese official think tanks have called for a review of China’s continued support to Russia in its war on Ukraine which they said damaged Beijing’s ties with the US and EU countries.

China should reflect on its relationship with Russia when dealing with containment by the US-led Western countries, said Liu Weidong, a research fellow at the Institute of American Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Speaking at a virtual forum hosted by Renmin University of China’s National Academy of Development and Strategy on Friday, Liu argued that Moscow had tried to “take advantage” of Beijing, both before and after the start of the Ukraine war.

"It is pursuing unilateral use of China, and it does not want to be used by China,” the Post quoted him as saying.

"What we seek is win-win cooperation under the premise of non-alignment,” Liu said, adding he wondered whether this win-win cooperation could be achieved.

He said the Biden administration was trying to link the two countries together on various issues to induce an alliance between Beijing and Moscow. If such an alliance were to be established, it would ultimately result in “mutual exhaustion rather than cooperation”, Liu said.

Also, a senior PLA General said China was shocked by the Ukraine war and is worried about the situation as it tries to find a peaceful solution.

Lt General He Lei, a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) strategist, has said Beijing had not been expecting the war, which began when Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year.

"China is very anxious and regretful because so far we have not seen the dawn of peace,” He told the Post, adding Beijing believes that negotiations are the only solution to end the war.

China has appointed its senior diplomat Li Hui as a special envoy to mediate to bring about a ceasefire and political settlement to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict.