9-7-2023 (BEIJING) US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has described her recent bilateral meetings with senior Chinese officials as “direct” and “productive”. The 10-hour meetings, which took place over four days, helped to stabilise the often tumultuous relationship between the two nations. Speaking at a press conference in Beijing, Yellen acknowledged that the US and China have significant disagreements, but stressed that they must be communicated “clearly and directly”.
Yellen added that President Joe Biden and herself do not view the relationship between the two nations as a great power conflict, and believe that the world is big enough for both countries to thrive. The objective of the visit was to establish and deepen ties with China’s new economic team, reduce the risk of misunderstanding, and pave the way for cooperation in areas such as climate change and debt distress.
While Yellen reiterated that Washington was not seeking to decouple from China’s economy, she emphasised that the US wanted to see an “open, free and fair economy”, not one that forces countries to take sides. Her visit also included talks with climate finance experts, women economists, and senior officials including Premier Li Qiang.
During her meetings, Yellen urged more cooperation between the sides on economic and climate issues, while criticising what she called “punitive actions” against US companies in China. She also raised “serious concerns” about what she called China’s “unfair economic practices” and recent uptick in coercive actions against US firms. Yellen added that healthy economic competition is only sustainable if it benefits both sides.
Yellen also discussed Russia’s war in Ukraine with her Chinese interlocutors and stressed that it was “essential” that Chinese firms avoid providing Russia with material support for the war or in evading sanctions. Both sides have downplayed expectations for breakthroughs during the talks, while hailing the opportunity for face-to-face diplomacy.
Yellen’s trip follows Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to Beijing last month, the first by a top US diplomat in the Biden presidency, while climate envoy John Kerry is expected to visit China this month. The US diplomatic push comes ahead of a possible meeting between President Biden and Xi Jinping, which could take place as soon as the Group of 20 summit in New Delhi in September or the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation gathering scheduled for November in San Francisco.
Yellen concluded by acknowledging that no single visit could solve the challenges overnight, but expressed hope that the trip would help build a resilient and productive channel of communication.
