Blinken to visit China, war in Ukraine on agenda - Politico

Politico reports.

Diplomats familiar with Blinken's visit plans said his trip to China is seen as continuation of the dialogue that began when Joe Biden met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Indonesia in November 2022. During the visit the US president pledged to maintain open lines of communication with Beijing during the period of aggravation of bilateral tensions.

Visit is expected to be a test of whether the Biden-Xi meeting has paved the way for more productive relations between the US and China at a time when they have become increasingly strained over issues ranging from Taiwan and trade policy to US concerns about human rights in China.

So far, neither the US State Department nor the Chinese government has released details of Blinken's upcoming visit to Beijing. However, in December 2022, State Department spokesman Ned Price said that Russia's war against Ukraine would be on agenda.

• On November 14, US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of G20 summit and made statements.