Current:Home > MarketsBlinken planning to travel to China soon for high-level talks -TrueNorth Capital Hub
Blinken planning to travel to China soon for high-level talks
View
Date:2025-04-14 01:21:55
Washington — Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to travel to China for high-level talks in the coming weeks, in what would be his first trip to the country since tensions flared between Washington and Beijing earlier this year.
Details of the visit are still being finalized, but planning is underway for Blinken to make the trip this month, three sources familiar with the matter told CBS News on Tuesday.
Blinken was set to visit China and meet with President Xi Jinping in February, but the trip was scuttled following the U.S. military shootdown of a Chinese spy balloon off the coast of South Carolina after it drifted across the country. Vedant Patel, a State Department spokesman, said Tuesday that he had "no travel for the Secretary to announce," but pointed to previous statements that Blinken's trip to China would be rescheduled "when conditions allow."
"Our viewpoint is that there is no substitute for in-person meetings or engagements, whether they be in Washington in Beijing, to carry forward our discussions," Patel said at a State Department press briefing Tuesday, "but I don't have anything else to offer on his travels."
The trip would come after a series of meetings between U.S. officials and their Chinese counterparts in recent weeks. It would also take place against the backdrop of a pair of recent military interactions that the U.S. has viewed as provocative.
On Saturday, a Chinese warship carried out what the U.S. called an "unsafe" maneuver in the Taiwan Strait, cutting sharply across the path of an American destroyer and forcing the U.S. vessel to slow down to avoid a collision. The U.S. also accused a Chinese fighter jet of performing an "unnecessarily aggressive maneuver" by flying directly in front of an American spy plane in late May over the South China Sea.
Bloomberg first reported the new planning details for Blinken's trip. News of its likely rescheduling comes on the heels of meetings this week between Chinese and senior U.S. officials in Beijing, which the State Department described in a readout as "candid and productive."
At the White House on Tuesday, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby declined to provide specifics about Blinken's travels, but said the trip by U.S. officials to Beijing this week was meant to "make sure the lines of communication remain open and to talk about the potential for future visits, higher level visits."
"They felt that they had good, useful conversations," Kirby said. "I think you'll see us speak to future visits here in the near future."
At the G-7 summit in Japan last month, President Biden predicted the chill in U.S.-China relations would begin to "thaw very shortly," and he has repeatedly mentioned that he intends to speak with Xi, though no dates for any such meeting or call have been announced.
In May, CIA Director William Burns secretly traveled to Beijing, becoming the most senior U.S. official to visit China since Blinken's trip was canceled. A U.S. official told CBS News that Burns "met with Chinese intelligence counterparts and emphasized the importance of maintaining open lines of communication in intelligence channels."
Burns' trip was among a growing list of carefully orchestrated interactions the Biden administration has arranged since the balloon incident.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met his counterpart, Defense Minister Li Shangfu, at an annual international defense summit in Singapore last week. A Pentagon spokesman said the two "spoke briefly" and shook hands, but there was no "substantive exchange." The interaction took place after the Chinese rejected a meeting between the two, noting Li has been under U.S. sanctions since 2018.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan met with China's top foreign policy official, Wang Yi, in Vienna last month for what the White House described as "candid, substantive, and constructive discussions."
Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao also met with U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in Washington and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai in Detroit late last month.
Eleanor Watson contributed reporting.
- In:
- Antony Blinken
- China
veryGood! (11)
Related
- Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
- At least 1 dead, 5 injured after vehicle drives into emergency room in Austin, Texas
- Nicki Nicole Seemingly Hints at Peso Pluma Breakup After His Super Bowl Outing With Another Woman
- Mississippi governor announces new law enforcement operation to curb crime in capital city
- Megan Fox's ex Brian Austin Green tells Machine Gun Kelly to 'grow up'
- Alabama lawmakers begin debate on absentee ballot restrictions
- Siemens Energy to build first US plant for large power transformers in North Carolina
- Kansas City turns red as Chiefs celebrate 3rd Super Bowl title in 5 seasons with a parade
- 'Kraven the Hunter' spoilers! Let's dig into that twisty ending, supervillain reveal
- Michael Kors inspired by grandmother’s wedding gown for Fall-Winter collection at NY Fashion Week
Ranking
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Blinken speaks with Paul Whelan, American detained in Russia, for third time
- Fortune 500 oil giant to pay $4 million for air pollution at New Mexico and Texas facilities
- Mississippi governor announces new law enforcement operation to curb crime in capital city
- Civic engagement nonprofits say democracy needs support in between big elections. Do funders agree?
- Taylor Swift makes it to 2024 Super Bowl to cheer on Travis Kelce with guests Blake Lively, Ice Spice
- What is net pay? How it works, how to calculate it and its difference from gross pay
- California may have to pay $300M for COVID-19 homeless hotel program after FEMA caps reimbursement
Recommendation
Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
Family of man who died after being tackled by mental crisis team sues paramedic, police officer
Where will Blake Snell, Cody Bellinger sign? MLB free agent rumors after Giants sign Soler
This SKIMS Satin Lace Dress Is the Best Slip I’ve Ever Worn as a Curvy Girl—Here's Exactly Why
Where will Elmo go? HBO moves away from 'Sesame Street'
Oklahoma softball transfer Jordy Bahl suffers season-ending injury in debut with Nebraska
Connecticut pastor found with crystal meth during traffic stop, police say
Police investigate altercation in Maine in which deputy was shot and residence caught fire