BEIJING - A Chinese state-backed newspaper criticised the visit of a senior US State Department official to China, saying his visit was motivated more by Washington’s goal of portraying itself as the side seeking communication and not Beijing.
The United States has been trying to create an image as a responsible country by delivering a “goodwill message” to the outside world that it has been seeking communication with China, and trying to shift the blame to China for the lack of communication or refusal to communicate, the Global Times wrote late on Sunday, citing Chinese experts.
The scathing commentary coincided with the arrival of Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink in Beijing, in a visit that the US State Department said will see discussions on “key issues in the bilateral relationship” of the two superpowers.
Sino-US relations have sunk to new lows since US State Secretary Antony Blinken scrapped a planned trip to China in February after an alleged Chinese spy balloon flew through US airspace.
Tensions have further worsened as both sides clashed over matters ranging from democratically governed Taiwan, which China claims as its own, to military activities in the South China Sea.
Ms Laura Rosenberger, chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan, which handles ties in the absence of official relations, arrived in Taipei on Monday for meetings with senior Taiwanese officials, the island’s Foreign Ministry said.
She told the Taiwanese media that the United States would not choose sides in Taiwan’s January presidential election and that Washington opposes “external interference” in the vote, the island’s official Central News Agency reported.
Speaking at a security summit in Singapore at the weekend, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said Beijing’s reluctance to talk undermined efforts to maintain peace in the region.
China’s Defence Minister Li Shangfu – under US sanctions since 2018 over the purchase of combat aircraft and equipment from Russia – had declined an invitation to meet Mr Austin at the summit.
Speaking privately on the sidelines of the summit, two Chinese military officers said that Beijing wanted clear signs from Washington of a less confrontational approach in Asia – including the dropping of sanctions against Mr Li – before military-to-military talks could resume.
Some experts have great doubts as to whether the US side can inject some positive energy into bilateral relations ahead of the next US presidential election, the Global Times said.
“The US has been seeking dialogue while continuing to be provocative,” it reported, quoting an expert at a Chinese state think-tank. “We haven’t seen any positive statements from the US concerning the core interests or bilateral relations.”
As for Mr Kritenbrink’s visit, he is not expected to give “any breakthrough performance”, and his trip should be seen only as an engagement at the working level, according to the newspaper.