U.S.-China Relations: Challenges and Prospects for the San Francisco Summit – Reuters

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has stated that the road to the San Francisco summit between President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden will not be an easy one, according to the foreign ministry. The statement comes after Wang met with Biden and his top aides in Washington, where they agreed to work towards the expected bilateral meeting. This meeting is part of a series of diplomatic engagements aimed at improving ties between the two countries, which became strained earlier this year. However, Wang cautioned that the journey to the summit would not be smooth and that it would not be on “autopilot”. He made these remarks after a discussion with members of the U.S. strategic community in Washington. Last month, China’s top security agency suggested that the meeting in San Francisco hinged on the U.S. “showing sufficient sincerity”. Wang emphasized the need for both countries to “return to Bali”, referring to the previous meeting between Biden and Xi in November 2022. He stated that Washington and Beijing must put into practice the consensus achieved during that meeting and work towards removing interference, overcoming obstacles, enhancing consensus, and gathering outcomes. Wang also highlighted the importance of maintaining dialogue despite the existing differences and contradictions between the two nations. The discussions between Wang and the U.S. officials also covered various topics, including the interaction between the Chinese and U.S. militaries, finance, science and technology, China’s investment environment and market access, as well as the Middle East and Ukraine crises. Reporting by Liz Lee; Editing by William Mallard