BEIJING: White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan is scheduled to pay an official visit to China next week to hold a meeting with Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Western media reported on Friday,
Media reports citing three people familiar with the matter said Sullivan and Yi are expected to lay the foundation for a potential meeting between US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping later this year.
Sullivan’s visit on August 27-29 comes at a time when the US is in the middle of a presidential campaign in which both presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her opponent Donald Trump have adopted tough positions on China, especially on tariffs.
In April this year, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited China amidst escalating pressure on Beijing over its support for Russia, while also aiming to navigate tensions between the two global powers.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, during a meeting, urged Blinken to address increasing disagreements or risk a “downward spiral” between the two sides as talks opened in Beijing.
He said ties between the world’s two major economies were “beginning to stabilize” after President Xi Jinping and President Joe Biden met at a November summit.
