It is the US that should reflect on and correct its wrongdoing,” Wang said. “The actions taken by the Chinese military are completely justified, lawful, safe and professional. On Monday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin rejected the US version of events, accusing the American destroyer of making “provocations” first. The US military’s Indo-Pacific Command said on Saturday that a Chinese ship came close to American destroyer USS Chung-Hoon, causing it to slow down to avoid a collision, in violation of the right to safe passage in international waters. The maritime incident days earlier had underscored the tensions between the two countries. In a statement released on Tuesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said: “The two sides conducted candid, constructive and fruitful communication on promoting the improvement of Sino-US relations and properly managing and controlling differences.”Ĭommunications would remain open, the ministry added. The State Department said the two sides exchanged views on their bilateral relationship, their “channels of communication” and other issues on Monday, adding that the American officials made clear that Washington would “stand up for US interests and values”. The talks also follow a visit by Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) director William Burns to China last month, which was confirmed by several US media outlets last week. Kritenbrink’s visit also followed an apparent snub last week after Beijing declined a request for a formal meeting between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Chinese counterpart, Li Shangfu, on the sidelines of a security summit in Singapore. “The two sides had candid and productive discussions as part of ongoing efforts to maintain open lines of communication and build on recent high-level diplomacy between the two countries,” the State Department said in a statement.
The mid-level talks, which mark continuing diplomacy between the two countries despite intensifying competition, come two days after the US military accused China of “unsafe” manoeuvres near a US military ship in the Taiwan Strait. Washington, DC – Officials from the United States had “candid and productive discussions” with Chinese diplomats in Beijing, the US Department of State has said, amid rising tensions between the two countries.ĭaniel Kritenbrink, assistant US secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, and Sarah Beran, National Security Council senior director for China, met with Chinese officials Ma Zhaoxu and Yang Tao on Monday.
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