China seeks 'healthy and stable' ties from Jake Sullivan visit, Wang Yi says

Before heading into talks with Sullivan at a hotel at the Yanqi Lake scenic area in the northern suburbs of Beijing on Tuesday, Wang touched on tensions in the ties between the two countries.

"China-US relations are of vital importance to the world. In the past few years, the relationship between the two countries has been full of twists and turns," Wang said.

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"The experience is worth summarising and the lessons need to be learned. The key is to keep the overall direction of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation."

Wang said he sought "in-depth communication" with Sullivan over the next two days.

"I hope that our communication this time will be strategic and substantive as always, and to be constructive at the same time, to ... truly achieve stable, healthy and sustainable development."

Sullivan said he looked forward to discussing a wide range of issues, including those the two nations agree on and the differences that needed to be managed "effectively and substantively".

"President Biden has been clear in his conversations with President Xi that he is committed to managing this important relationship responsibly. And the outcomes of the Woodside summit and the works we have done since then demonstrate that," Sullivan said, referring to a meeting between presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping in California in November.

US national security adviser Jake Sullivan arrives in Beijing on Tuesday for a three-day visit. Photo: CCTV alt=US national security adviser Jake Sullivan arrives in Beijing on Tuesday for a three-day visit. Photo: CCTV>

Sullivan said the countries must ensure that their competition did not veer into conflict "and that we find ways to work together where our interests align".

"And all of that requires the kind of strategic and substantive and constructive dialogues that Director Wang was just referring to, and to which we remain committed," Sullivan said, adding that he would hold discussions with Wang in the "afternoon, in the evening and tomorrow".

His visit to China is the first by a White House national security adviser in eight years and is widely seen as laying the groundwork for another summit between Biden and Xi, who agreed in San Francisco in November to manage tensions between the two rival nations through a range of working groups.

There has been speculation Biden could visit China before he steps down in January. He remains the only US president in decades not to visit China during his term.

Sullivan was welcomed at Beijing airport by Yang Tao, director general of the Chinese foreign ministry's department of North American and Oceanian affairs, and US ambassador to China Nicholas Burns.

Yang shook hands and spoke briefly with Sullivan after the US official disembarked, according to a video posted on Weibo by a news blogger associated with CCTV.

China's alleged support for Russia's defence industry through the transfer of dual-use goods for the Ukraine war - a charge Beijing denies - is also expected to be on the agenda.

US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Monday that the talks between the two officials were of great value in handling bilateral relations.

"The channel between the national security adviser and the director has played an important role in responsibly managing the competition and the tension between our two countries," Kirby said.

The Chinese foreign ministry said Wang was expected to raise the issue of what China deems America's "arbitrary measures". Washington has imposed tariffs, export controls and unilateral sanctions on various Chinese companies and products, targeting China's hi-tech development and alleged "overcapacity" in manufacturing.

On Friday, the US also sanctioned dozens of Chinese entities and individuals over their alleged roles in "bolstering" Russia's war in Ukraine.

China's special envoy for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui said sanctions on Chinese entities over the Ukraine war were "illegal and unilateral" and "not based on facts", in an apparent reference to the US, according to Reuters.

Li, who has just completed his fourth peace tour to a few Global South nations, has served as China's peace envoy on the Ukraine war, with Beijing recently ramping up efforts to promote a six-point consensus with Brazil.

Sullivan's visit also comes as China and the Philippines, a US treaty ally, continue to clash over disputed territory in the South China Sea.

A similar collision also occurred on August 19, prompting the US to accuse China of "reckless manoeuvres" and reaffirm its commitment to defend its ally if attacked in the disputed waters.

Sullivan's visit to China also comes as polls show a close US presidential race between candidates Vice-President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump.

While the Biden administration said Sullivan's trip should not be tied "too closely" to the election, analysts said the poll in November would be one of the most important issues on the meeting agenda.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2024 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

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