Top US, China officials to meet on military, Taiwan, fentanyl

[August 27, 2024]  By Trevor Hunnicutt

BEIJING (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan is embarking on several days of talks with top Chinese officials in Beijing this week, aimed at quieting tensions between the two superpowers ahead of the Nov. 5 U.S. election.

Sullivan, China's top diplomat Wang Yi and others meet for the talks from Tuesday to Thursday as the two countries are at odds over the Middle East and Ukraine, Chinese territorial claims from Taiwan to the South China Sea, and trade.

Upon arrival in Beijing on Tuesday, Sullivan met first with Wang at a lush resort on the northern outskirts of the Chinese capital, where they shook hands in front of Chinese and American flags set before an artistic depiction of the Chinese landscape.

In his remarks in front of journalists, Wang described China-U.S. ties as "critical", with a bearing on the world, and which have taken "twists and turns".

Wang added that he hoped relations between the two countries would move to a condition of stable, healthy and sustainable development.

Before proceeding into a closed-door meeting, Sullivan said both would talk about areas of agreement and disagreement that "need to be managed effectively and substantively".

In the final months of his presidency, Biden has pushed direct diplomacy to influence Chinese President Xi Jinping and keep those tensions at bay; U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate in November's election, would likely pursue a similar strategy.

However many analysts aligned with Republican former President Donald Trump see that approach as too soft, in the face of China's increasingly assertive foreign policy.

Sullivan wants to expand military-to-military talks down to the theater command level, a step that Washington hopes could prevent conflict in specific areas like the Taiwan strait.

The U.S. also wants China to take more action at home to prevent the development of chemicals that can be made into fentanyl, the leading cause of U.S. drug overdoses, and reach an understanding about safety standards for artificial intelligence.

Beijing plans to express its disapproval over U.S. tariffs on a range of manufactured goods and export controls targeting Chinese chip makers, and talk about its claims of sovereignty over democratically-ruled Taiwan.

"China will focus on expressing serious concerns, clarifying its solemn position and making serious demands on the Taiwan issue, the right to development and China's strategic security," the Chinese foreign affairs ministry said.

"The United States has continuously taken unreasonable measures against China in terms of tariffs, export controls, investment reviews and unilateral sanctions, which have seriously undermined China's legitimate rights and interests."

Both sides are also warily watching the prospect that the Gaza war could spiral into a broader regional conflict.

Sullivan's trip is the first by a U.S. national security adviser since 2016. He has held regular talks with Wang with an eye to managing competition between the superpowers, and they last met in Bangkok in January.

Wang Yi, the director of the Communist Party's Central Foreign Affairs Commission Office shakes hands with White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan at Yanqi Lake in Beijing, China, Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024. Ng Han Guan/Pool via REUTERS

In Beijing, the two officials could also set the path towards a final meeting between Biden and Xi. Peru hosts the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum summit and Brazil hosts the Group of 20 summit, both in November, where the leaders could meet.

HARRIS VS. TRUMP?

Accepting the Democratic nomination last week, Harris said she would ensure that "America - not China - wins the competition for the 21st century."

As vice president, she has spent significant time traveling to, and bolstering U.S. relationships with, China's neighbors, such as Japan, South Korea and Vietnam.

Trump has vowed across-the-board tariffs, with special emphasis on goods from China. His allies have pledged support to China's neighbors, including Japan and South Korea, under a new Republican administration.

U.S. intelligence suggests China has no preference in the upcoming election contest, according to people familiar with the matter.

The United States and China have sought to stabilize rocky ties since they sank to a historic low after the U.S. downed a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon last year.

Biden and Xi agreed at a summit in November last year to have their teams speak on military matters, artificial intelligence and curbing illicit fentanyl production.

Yet issues persist. Self-ruled Taiwan faces ramped up pressure from China, which has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control. The United States is Taiwan's most important backer and arms supplier.

The U.S.-allied Philippines and China clashed again in disputed waters of the South China Sea on Sunday in the latest of a series of maritime and air confrontations in the strategic waterway.

On trade, Biden has added tariffs on Chinese goods deemed a threat to U.S. manufacturing and national security, and just last week his administration added 105 Russian and Chinese firms to a trade restriction list over their alleged support of the Russian military, a move China condemned.

China has vowed retaliation and Foreign Minister Wang has said the curbs showed that some in the United States may be "losing their minds."

(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt in Anchorage, Alaska; Additional reporting by Antoni Slodkowski and Liz Lee in Beijing; Editing by Steve Coates and Clarence Fernandez)

[© 2024 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.