US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Friday of the need to preserve “peace and stability” in the Taiwan Strait.
Blinken “emphasized that preserving peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait is essential to maintaining regional and global security and prosperity there,” State Department spokesman Blinken said. Ned Price, following their 90-minute meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
The head of American diplomacy also warned his counterpart of “the implications if China were to provide support for the Russian invasion of a sovereign country”, according to the same source.
China is officially neutral but sometimes accused by Westerners of being too conciliatory with Russia, although US officials expressed measured hopes after Beijing’s statements this week at the UN.
The Chinese minister also met in New York with his Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Kouleba, assuring him that Beijing called for respecting “the territorial integrity of all countries”.
The meeting between Messrs. Blinken and Wang have been “extremely sincere, constructive and thorough”, summed up a US official on condition of anonymity, as the United States is keen to keep communication channels open with Beijing.
It was their first meeting since discussions in July in Bali where the two men had shown their desire to renew the dialogue.
A month later, the speaker of the American House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, went to Taiwan provoking the ire of Beijing and renewed tensions between the two great powers.
In an interview on Sunday, US President Joe Biden said he was ready to intervene militarily if China resorted to force.
“Dangerous Signals”
During his meeting with Blinken, Wang accused the United States of “sending very bad and dangerous signals” encouraging Taiwanese independence, according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement.
Mr. Wang told Mr. Blinken that China wants “peaceful reunification” with Taiwan, warning that “the more activity that rages for ‘Taiwan independence’, the less likely a peaceful solution becomes”. according to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
For his part, the American official indicated that Mr. Blinken had insisted in front of Mr. Wang that “there has been no change” in the American policy of recognition of Beijing only, expressing his opposition to “any unilateral change in the status quo” by either side.
In a pledge of appeasement, the Chinese minister said Thursday that he met in New York with the United States’ climate envoy, the former head of diplomacy John Kerry, despite the fact that Beijing has suspended cooperation in the matter. in retaliation for Ms. Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.
Mr Blinken went ahead with the interview on Friday despite easing his schedule due to the death of his father on Thursday.
In a speech Thursday in New York, Wang reiterated Beijing’s anger over US support for the island of Taiwan, which Beijing considers part of its territory.
“The issue of Taiwan is becoming the most risky subject of tension in US-Chinese relations,” he noted before the Asia Society, a research center.
The US Congress is a strong supporter of Taiwan. A bill which notably provides for the first direct military aid from the United States to Taiwan, recently passed a key stage in the Senate.