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Relations between the US and China are improving

The head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, acknowledged on Friday a decrease in tensions with China, while at the same time expressing again his concern about Taiwan. Asked during an exchange of ideas at the University of Chicago if the temperature has dropped in relations with the Asian giant, he replied: “I think so, because when you talk, when you are engaged in this, it tends to have that effect.” “The rest of the world expects us to manage this relationship responsibly,” he continued, because other countries “know it affects them as well.” Blinken will visit Beijing on February 5 and 6, according to a US official, the first such trip to China since his Republican predecessor Mike Pompeo in 2018.

The trip was decided on the sidelines of a summit in Indonesia, in November, between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping. But Blinken at the same time expressed concern about Taiwan, recalling Beijing’s attempts to isolate the island – considered by the Chinese power as part of its territory – as well as a series of military maneuvers. “What we’ve seen in recent years is, I think, China has decided it’s no longer comfortable with the status quo” on the island, he said. “Here’s what we say to the Chinese: You say it’s a matter of sovereignty, we say it directly concerns the United States and the rest of the world,” citing Taiwan’s crucial role in the global economy with its role in semiconductor production. Blinken went to Chicago (North) on Friday, where he met in particular with members of the Ukrainian community.

By Ovidiu Stanica

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