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Did President Biden make a series of promises to his counterpart Xi?

2023-06-29 15:17:10, Kosova & Bota CNA

WASHINGTON - The United States' efforts to ease tensions with China are complicated by apparent differences of opinion over the commitments each side has made to the other.

Chinese officials and state media insist that US President Joe Biden has made a series of promises to President Xi Jinping – described by Beijing as a framework of “four nos and one no goal” – that should guide official US behavior. to China.

"I hope the US side will adhere to the consensus that President Biden and I reached during our meeting in Bali and put into practice the corresponding positive intentions," Chinese state media quoted President Xi as telling the US Secretary of State. Antony Blinken who visited China on June 19.

Xinhua, China's main state media, quoted Mr Blinken as saying that the US side "will abide by the promises made by President Biden".

Going through a list of four promises it says were made, Xinhua reported that Mr. Blinken said the United States " does not seek a 'new cold war,' does not seek to change China's political system, does not seek to antagonize China through strengthening alliances, does not support Taiwan independence and has no intention of entering into conflict with China."

But when asked to confirm that Mr. Blinken made the comments, the State Department referred VOA to a series of interviews Mr. Blinken conducted after meeting with President Xi in Beijing, as well as comments Secretary Blinken made to the press. .

While some of the reported commitments generally reflect existing US policy, Secretary Blinken did not mention any promises President Biden made to his counterpart Xi in his public comments. He reiterated the administration's efforts to strengthen the U.S. technological and industrial position at home, as well as alliances and partnerships abroad.

On the question of Taiwan, Secretary Blinken said that while the Biden administration does not support Taiwan independence, "the concern we have is that China changes its policy when it comes to resolving these differences peacefully."

"We're using the engagement to try to advance our interests and protect them," Secretary Blinken said of the Biden administration's overall position on China, including his trip to Beijing.

China policy

The Biden administration's most comprehensive description of its China policy was provided by Secretary Blinken in May 2022.

"We do not seek to transform China's political system. Our task is to prove once again that democracy can meet pressing challenges, create opportunities, advance human dignity; that the future belongs to those who believe in freedom and that all countries will be free to chart their own paths without coercion."

Biden quoted in 2021

Chinese state media initially quoted President Biden as making promises to President Xi when the two met for a virtual summit in November 2021.

President Biden was quoted as saying: "I want to reiterate clearly that the United States does not seek to change China's political system, does not seek to oppose China through strengthening alliances, does not intend to enter into conflict with China, that the United States is committed to implementing their long-standing "one China" policy, do not support Taiwan independence, wish to see peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait."

A year later, China's State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attempted to use these points to criticize members of the Biden administration in a keynote speech at the Asia Society in September 2022.

"President Biden has emphasized on many occasions that the US does not seek to fight a "new cold war", does not seek to change China's political system, does not seek to oppose China through strengthening alliances, does not support Taiwan's independence, does not have the intention to enter into conflict with China," Mr. Wang said, before expressing Beijing's disappointment.

"For two orchestras to cooperate, it is mandatory that both conductors first establish a common tone, but at the same time, all players must play their notes in harmony, according to the same set of scores. However, what we have witnessed is that the American Team seems to have worked with two sets of scores and failed to translate the political will expressed by their leader into logical policies, which in turn has caused confusion among the Chinese people and the peoples of the countries different" , according to Mr. Wang.

"The three principles proposed by President Xi in terms of bilateral relations... China and the United States should respect each other, coexist peacefully, cooperate to win, together with the 'four nos and one' don't aim" expressed by President Biden, form a perfect framework," Wang said.

"What the US team should do now is to implement what President Biden has said about 'four nos and one no target' and get the bilateral relationship back on track," Mr. Wang continued .

Wei Jingsheng, one of China's most prominent dissidents now living in exile, pointed out the difference between a declaration and a promise in an interview with VOA. While declarations are just declarations, the word 'promise' implies an obligation and a pact reached between two parties," Mr. Wei pointed out.