US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China in the coming week of April,2024 according to the sources.
As reported by CNN, this visit is part of the Biden Administration's plan to manage the US-China relationship by strengthening communication lines to reduce the risk of miscalculations and conflicts.
The China visit by Blinken comes after a series of highest-level interactions between the two countries, including the phone call between the Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping.
A senior State Department said in an official statement that Blinken will meet with senior Chinese officials in both Shanghai and Beijing during his April 24-26 visit.
The statement outlined Blinken's "three primary objectives for his trip to China."
“First, making progress on key issues; second, clearly and directly communicating concerns on bilateral regional and global issues; and third, responsibly managing competition."
The official further added, "Blinken plans to “reiterate our deep concerns regarding the PRC’s support for Russia’s defense industrial base,” as well as its human rights abuses and “unfair economic and trade practices."
Meanwhile, Blinken will also discuss the situation in the Middle East. The US has repeatedly called on China both publicly and privately to press Iran to exercise restraint as tensions simmer between it and Israel.
“And of course, the secretary will discuss challenges in the Indo-Pacific, including PRC provocations in the South China Sea,” as well as North Korea’s “threatening rhetoric and reckless actions."
Blinken's upcoming visit to China will mark his first since June, as the United States sought to resume high-level engagements that Beijing had reduced following a 2022 trip by then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, which China claims as its territory.
