Antony Blinken Set to Meet China's Wang Yi on During ASEAN Meeting

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to meet with China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, during the ASEAN meeting that will be held in Jakarta, Indonesia on Thursday.

The situation comes as Wang is representing China at the Jakarta talks that include ASEAN and partner countries and follows Beijing saying that Foreign Minister Qin Gang would not be able to attend due to health reasons.

Antony Blinken To Meet Wang Yi

In June, Blinken met Qin and Wang in Beijing, which marked the first visit to China by a U.S. secretary of state in the past five years. That meeting was made in an effort to bring stability to the intense rivalry between the two global superpowers, which are also the two largest economies in the world.

Earlier this month, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen visited China, and climate envoy John Kerry is set to visit the region next week. Wang is the foreign policy chief for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and is one rank higher than QIn, who is the foreign minister of the Chinese government, as per the Straits Times.

On Wednesday, China's ambassador to the United States also held a rare meeting at the Pentagon that was attended by the top U.S. defense official for Asia. Officials said that the talks followed criticism by the American government regarding China's reluctance to engage in military communications.

Additionally, analysts see the meetings as parts of efforts to pave the way for a summit to be held between United States President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping later this year. However, despite the planned meetings and talks, the tension between the two countries remains high.

The last meeting Blinken held with Wang in Beijing appeared to be the most controversial of his visits. At the time, the Chinese diplomat told the American official that the "root cause" of the tension between China and the U.S. was the American government's "misperceptions of China" as well as its "misguided China policies."

Tense U.S.-China Relations

In Jakarta, Blinken and Wang were seen seated across from each other inside a meeting room in a hotel but neither of them talked to the press. The situation comes as Washington is seemingly looking to put a floor under its relations with China, according to Reuters.

On the other hand, Beijing has described its relations with the American government to be at its lowest point since the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two parties. Now, the two countries remain at odds over a range of issues, including trade, security, and geopolitical topics.

In particular, Wang's tone regarding discussions surrounding Taiwan was pointed, saying that China has no room for compromise or concessions. Under the law, the U.S. is required to provide the democratic island with the means to protect itself but has long supported a policy of "strategic ambiguity."

The expected meeting between Blinken and Wang comes as proposed talks between Defense Secretary Llyod Austin and China's Li Shangfu did not come to fruition at last month's Shangri-La Dialogue, said DW News.