U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken Holds Final Day of Meetings with Chinese Officials, Little Inclination to Bend on Hardened Positions

On Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a second and final day of critical meetings with senior Chinese officials. Despite both sides expressing a willingness to talk, they showed little inclination to bend on hardened positions that have caused tensions to soar.

The meetings began with Blinken meeting Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang for nearly six hours on Sunday. After the meeting, both countries said they had agreed to continue high-level discussions. On Monday, Blinken met with China’s top diplomat Wang Yi for about three hours. It is still not confirmed if Blinken will meet President Xi Jinping before he departs in the late evening.

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote in a statement that the U.S. must respect China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and clearly oppose “Taiwan independence.” Chinese state media said Wang told Blinken that “China has no room to compromise or concede” on Taiwan.

The meetings come at a time of heightened tensions between the two countries, with the U.S. accusing China of human rights abuses and economic coercion. Blinken’s visit is seen as an attempt to start a dialogue between the two countries and to find a way to ease tensions. It is unclear if the two sides have made any progress in their discussions.