U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Chinese counterpart Qin Gang spoke by telephone late Tuesday ahead of an expected visit by Blinken to Beijing.
Blinken tweeted that the two diplomats talked about “ongoing efforts to maintain open channels of communication as well as bilateral and global issues.”
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller added in a statement that Blinken “made clear the U.S. would continue to use diplomatic engagements to raise areas of concern as well as areas of potential cooperation.”
A Chinese Foreign Ministry statement about the call said Qin told Blinken the United States should stop interfering in China’s affairs and undermining China’s security and development interests. The ministry also said it hopes the United States will work with China to manage differences and promote cooperation.
Blinken canceled a planned trip to China in February amid tensions that included a Chinese spy balloon flying over the United States and China’s objection to U.S. support of Taiwan. The State Department has not announced a makeup visit, but it is expected to happen soon.
Some information for this report came from Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
