China warns that the relationship with the US may slide into a “downward spiral”, with the potential for conflict. Important meeting in Beijing

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi warned the US, at the start of a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, that recent improvements in relations between the two countries are being jeopardized by “disruptions” that could take them back on a “downward spiral”, which could generate rivalry, confrontation and even conflict, write Reuters and The Guardian.

Wang Yi spoke at the start of a much-anticipated meeting in Beijing with his American counterpart Antony Blinken, at a time marked by renewed tensions in relations between the two superpowers.

Blinken’s three-day visit to China comes five months after a largely successful summit between US and Chinese leaders Joe Biden and Xi Jinping, which was followed by a reduction in tensions over Taiwan, but also by measures such as reestablishing contacts between the armies of the two countries or bilateral cooperation in combating drug trafficking.

But the US is now threatening sanctions against Chinese companies for supplying the Russian defense industry and is considering tariffs on what Washington sees as Chinese manufacturing overcapacity. The Biden administration has also tightened controls on the export of advanced computer chips.

The TikTok issue is also an important one – and a symbolic one.

While Blinken was on its way to China, the US Congress passed a law that would ban the popular app within a year in the US – unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, sells its stake.

And along with this decision, a separate one was passed, providing billions of dollars in aid to US allies in the Indo-Pacific region, most of which would benefit Taiwan.

China’s red lines

At the start of a series of meetings between the US and Chinese delegations at the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing, Wang suggested that the bilateral relationship was at a turning point, Reuters writes.

Since the Biden-Xi summit in San Francisco in November, he said, the relationship has begun to “stabilize,” with increased dialogue and cooperation.

“But at the same time, the negative factors in our relationship continue to grow, and the relationship is experiencing all kinds of disruptions,” he continued. “China’s legitimate development rights have been unjustifiably suppressed and our core interests are being challenged,” the official said.

“Should China and the United States maintain the correct direction of moving forward with stability or return to a downward spiral?” he asked.

“It is a major question facing the two countries that tests our sincerity and ability,” Wang added, warning the US “not to violate China’s red lines in terms of sovereignty, security and development interests.”

“Should the two countries promote international cooperation on global issues and achieve gains for all, or engage in rivalry and confrontation or even slide into conflict, which would be a loss for all?” Wang asked.

“The international community is waiting for our response,” he stressed.

In response, Blinken said he welcomed the opportunity to have face-to-face talks “to avoid misunderstandings, to avoid miscalculations.”

“It is important to demonstrate that we are responsibly managing the most important relationship for both of us in the world, the most important relationship for both of us,” the US official continued.

Blinken is also expected to meet with President Xi Jinping on Friday, although Beijing usually does not confirm such meetings until the last minute.

What Washington wants

US officials say there has been relative calm in the Taiwan Strait since the Biden-Xi summit, after a period of high tension in which Chinese warships and aircraft regularly approached Taiwan, The Guardian writes.

At the same time, however, there have been growing frictions in the South China Sea between China – which claims sovereignty over most of the sea – and neighboring countries, particularly the Philippines, a US ally.

One of the key topics of the talks in Beijing will be cooperation in the fight against drugs.

At the November summit, China took some steps to reduce the supply of chemical precursors and equipment used by traffickers to make fentanyl, the synthetic opioid that is the leading cause of death among Americans ages 18 to 49.

However, there is concern in Washington that the measures taken by Beijing have been symbolic and have not yet had much effect.

Blinken, who is accompanied to Beijing by Todd Robinson, assistant secretary of state for international narcotics and law enforcement affairs, is calling for stronger action against Chinese suppliers.

The secretary of state also came to deliver a message that Chinese companies could soon face sanctions from the US and its European allies for selling weapons components and dual-use equipment to the arms industry of Russia, which is rebuilding and modernizing itself to fuel Vladimir Putin’s drive to conquer Ukraine.

China has rejected calls to limit these exports, describing them as foreign interference in trade relations between China and a close strategic partner.