Beijing, US trade barbs over Taiwan
Wang Yi says ‘shadow cast’ over relations
BEIJING: In unusually blunt language to a US secretary of state, China’s foreign minister accused the United States on Monday of interfering in its internal affairs and of harming his nation’s interests on the question of Taiwan.
In a face-to-face exchange with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the foreign minister, Wang Yi, chided the Trump administration for “ceaselessly elevating” trade tensions and “casting a shadow” over relations between the two countries.
Mr Pompeo, who sat across the table from Mr Wang at the start of talks in Beijing, said in a tart response that the United States had a “fundamental disagreement” on the issues that China raised.
The sharp tit-for-tat stripped away the customary veneer of diplomatic niceties during public remarks. It came days after Washington laid down a tough new China policy announced by Vice President Mike Pence, who declared in a speech that the United States would “not stand down”.
Mr Pompeo arrived in Beijing after a trip to North Korea, South Korea and Japan that was largely focused on setting a time and place for a second summit between President Donald Trump and the North’s leader, Kim Jong-un. As he left Seoul, the South Korean capital, the secretary of state said he had made progress on arranging a meeting, which Trump wants before the midterm elections next month.
Washington continues to seek China’s help in smoothing the path to the denuclearisation of the North and that was part of the secretary’s mission when he landed in Beijing.
From the outset of his session with Mr Wang, though, the deterioration of relations between Beijing and Washington in recent months took centre stage.
Mr Wang complained that the United States was “constantly interfering in China’s internal and external affairs” but did not detail specific instances of that.
Such language could refer to Washington’s complaints about what it considers the Chinese government’s unfair subsidies of major industries, particularly technology. It could also refer to the Pentagon’s recent arms sale to Taiwan, the self-governing island that China considers its own. It was also probably a nod to the US Navy’s stepped-up operations around islands that Beijing claims in the South China Sea.
Mr Pompeo’s visit did not include a meeting with China’s leader, Xi Jinping, apparently another signal of displeasure by the Chinese. The secretary of state met with Mr Xi during his last visit to Beijing, in June.
Last week, US officials said they were seeking meetings with the “leadership”, a phrase commonly used to refer to Mr Xi. A notional schedule released during Mr Pompeo’s trip listed a meeting with him.
But Chinese analysts said it would be highly unlikely for Mr Xi to agree to see a cabinet-level US official, given the curdled relationship and Mr Pence’s forthright speech. Instead of Mr Xi delivering a tough message, Yang Jiechi, the state councillor, would do so, Chinese analysts said.
“Receiving Pompeo in Beijing by anyone is itself a ‘favour’, considering what the Trump administration has done to China since early July,” said Shi Yinhong, professor of international relations at Renmin University in Beijing.
At a briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, its spokesman said the downturn in relations would not affect cooperation on North Korean issues. “In short, no,” Lu Kang, the spokesman said when asked if there would be a negative effect.
But cooperation on North Korea seemed increasingly unlikely. North Korea has not agreed to Washington’s major request for the first step toward denuclearisation: an inventory of all its nuclear assets. The North’s adamance means this is an issue that China would not be able to assist with, analysts said.
And while Washington wants to keep the pressure on North Korea’s economy by enforcing strict United Nations sanctions, China now opposes that stance. At the UN last month, Mr Wang, the foreign minister, proposed an easing of sanctions against the North, and China has begun to allow certain kinds of trade to flow.
“China regards the lack of progress on the North as caused almost wholly by the Trump administration,” Mr Shi said. “So China cannot and is not willing to help it in any substantial extent, even putting aside the rottenness of bilateral relations.”