US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken will be visiting China this weekend in a renewed attempt by America to reset fractious relations and keep open lines of communication between the two global rivals.
There has been rising tension in the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait in recent months as the US and China locked themselves in a tussle to expand their influence over this strategically important region.
The US Secretary of State’s attempt will be to lower tensions and prevent the ongoing rivalry from turning into a conflict.
Blinken’s two-day visit on June 18 and 19 will be the first trip to Beijing by a US Foreign Secretary since 2018 and the first of a senior cabinet-rank official of the Joe Biden Administration.
His earlier visit to Beijing was cancelled after an alleged balloon was found flying over sensitive American military sites in February.
Blinken will meet his Chinese counterpart, Qin Gang, and other senior officials. But there is no indication if he will also call on Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Blinken will travel to London from Beijing for talks with officials of the UK, Ukraine, and other countries at the Ukraine Recovery Conference.
China trip comes on the eve of Modi’s US visit
His visit to Beijing takes place barely a few days before Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first state visit to the US between June 21 and 23.
Since Modi’s visit to the US takes place against the backdrop of rising concerns among countries in the Indo-Pacific region over China’s assertive rise in the region, this will also be a key issue of discussion between the Indian Prime Minister and US President Joe Biden’s team.
India has been locked in a military standoff with China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the unofficial border between the two countries, since May 2020 to prevent Chinese attempts to unilaterally alter the agreed status quo.
Though India and China have been engaged in a series of meetings at the diplomatic and military levels, relations have remained strained due to developments at the border.
Blinken will return to Washington on June 21 to be with other senior members of the Biden Administration to welcome Modi during his US visit.
US wooing India to meet China challenge
The Biden Administration has pulled out all the stops to make the Indian Prime Minister’s state visit memorable.
The US aim is to bring India into a tighter strategic embrace as Washington prepares itself to meet the China challenge on all fronts.
Apart from a private dinner and a state banquet hosted by President Biden, Modi has also been invited to address a joint session of the US Congress by the Republican Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy—an indication of the bipartisan support for India.
The US Secretary of State will host an official lunch in Modi’s honour at the State Department, where Vice President Kamala Harris and other senior officials will likely be present.
Blinken will be able to share his assessment of China and some key elements of his discussions there with the Indian Prime Minister.
India is among the countries in Asia that the US is looking at for setting up shop, as it plans to enter into joint venture production of some fighter jet engines and other munitions.
Some US tech companies could also be shifted to India in the near future.
Despite US attempt, a breakthrough with China unlikely
The Blinken visit to Beijing took place after a phone conversation between the US Secretary of State and the Chinese foreign minister.
The US says Blinken’s visit is aimed at "reducing the risk of miscalculation".
But Qin Gang said the US should stop interfering in China’s internal affairs and not harm its sovereignty, security, and development interests in the name of competition.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said, "It would be disastrous for us to attempt to decouple from China. De-risk, yes. Decouple? Absolutely not," Yellen told the US House Financial Services Committee.
Washington wants to "de-risk" its relationship with Beijing, which essentially means not jeopardising the $600-billion trade with China while restricting exports of technology that can be used for military purposes.
Caution over de-risking
But the chief executive of Nvidia, the world’s most valuable semiconductor company, has warned that the US tech industry is at risk of "enormous damage" over the escalating battle over chips between Washington and Beijing.
Its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Jensen Huang, told the Financial Times that China is one of the company’s biggest markets for advanced chips, but they can’t be sold there because of US export controls.
He said Chinese companies have begun building their own chips to rival Nvidia’s market-leading gaming, graphics and artificial intelligence (AI) processors.
Huang pointed out that "if China can’t buy from the US, they’ll just build it themselves."
"So, the US has to be careful. China is a very important market for the technology industry," the Nvidia CEO warned.
But it remains to be seen if the Biden Administration pays heed to such a warning.
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