Relations between the United States and China are at a low point in the post-Trump era, and nearly three weeks after his tenure President Biden
Joe Biden DOJ Dismisses Lawsuit Against Author of Melania Trump Tell-All Book Google Expands Election Security Support for Federal State Campaigns Biden Backs House Democrats Proposed Threshold for COVID-19 Checks MORE has yet to talk to his Beijing counterpart, President Xi Jinping.
Biden has vowed to approach China in a different way than before President Trump
Donald Trump DOJ asks for resignation of most Trump-appointed US lawyers: Report Trump attorney withdraws request not to hold impeachment trial on Saturday Kinzinger in op-ed calls GOP senators to convict Trump in impeachment process, which campaigned against China’s trade policy, then blamed Beijing for the coronavirus that devastated the U.S. economy in Trump’s reelection year.
“I’m not going to do it like Trump did,” Biden said in an interview with CBS on Sunday about his approach to Beijing. “We are going to focus on international traffic rules.”
Biden is under severe pressure to crack down on Beijing, with Republicans already telegraphing that it will be a problem in the mid-term 2022 – and likely the 2024 presidential election.
But the president has also said he is willing to cooperate with Beijing when it is in the interest of the US.
This includes efforts to defeat COVID-19, cope with climate change, expand nuclear non-proliferation – most notably, getting Iran back to compliance with the 2015 nuclear agreement, and curbing North Korea’s nuclear threat – and, most recently, restore democracy in Myanmar after the military coup.
Tensions between the two countries are high in the post-Trump era, partly because of the rhetoric of the former president – who repeatedly called COVID-19 the ‘China virus’, referring to the fact that the first cases were identified in the Chinese city of Wuhan – but also because legislators on both sides are criticizing Beijing for many policies affecting the economy and national security.
Tensions last spilled over into the South China Sea after Beijing rejected joint exercises by two US aircraft carriers calling it an attempt by the US to “flex its muscles” in the region that “damages peace and stability.”
The comments followed Beijing’s earlier frustration against the US when a US warship sailed into the waters close to China-controlled islands, which a number of regional countries have made claims about.
The US 7th Fleet said the movement was a “freedom of navigation,” but the Chinese military accused the US of encroaching on China’s sovereignty and security.
Yet Chinese officials have also repeatedly called for “no confrontation, no conflict, mutual respect and win-win cooperation” with the US.
Bonnie Glaser, director of the China Power Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said Biden was critical last week in his foreign policy speech against Chinese policy – where he said the US leadership must face up ” China’s ambitions to rival the United States ”. – but that the president and his team have been in no hurry to talk to Beijing.
“They have other priorities, including coordinating with allies and partners,” she wrote in an email to The Hill.
“Meanwhile, the Chinese are sending out the message that they are willing to improve bilateral ties, but only if done on Chinese terms. There has yet to be some serious discussion between the two countries about how to deal with their disagreements or how to work together on issues where they may have common ground. “
Biden said in his interview with CBS on Sunday that there was no reason to “not call Xi” and that the two “have a lot to talk about.”
The president said he is not looking for conflict between the two nations, but warned that “there will be extreme competition.”
Secretary of State Antony Blink
Antony BlinkenColombia registers thousands of migrants from Venezuela in attempt to give them legal residence The Hill’s 12:30 Report: Senate prepares for impeachment process to start Biden’s government announces plans to rejoin UN Human Rights Council MORE is the most senior US official to speak to the Chinese so far, in a phone call last week with Yang Jiechi, a senior Chinese Communist Party official and diplomat.
The conversation largely focused on hostile aspects of the relationship, with the secretary raising the issue of human rights violations in Tibet, Hong Kong and Xinjiang. On the latter issue, the secretary has sided with the Trump administration because of her determination that China is committing genocide against Muslim Uyghurs and other ethnic groups.
Blinken also urged China to condemn the military coup in Myanmar.
Beijing has so far refrained from calling the military takeover a coup, although it has endorsed a UN Security Council statement calling for the restoration of democratic rule in the country and the release of detained, democratically elected government officials.
Both Blinken and a national security advisor Jake Sullivan
Jake Sullivan Overnight: Biden Announces End of US Support for Offensive Operations in Yemen | Pentagon orders indoor and outdoor masks wearing | Military COVID deaths soar on Biden: US takes ‘urgent’ steps to improve cybersecurity Biden condemns Navalny’s jail sentence in Russia MORE, who has not spoken to Chinese officials, has held talks with allies in Europe and Asia about facing threats from China.
Sullivan had previously said it is a priority to align with allies on dealing with Beijing at an event with the US Peace Institute last month.
“I think China is at the top of the list of things we need to work on and work on to get fully aligned,” he said.
Sullivan also said the US should be willing to impose charges on Beijing for the human rights violations, but did not comment on those measures.
Still, the Republicans are laying the groundwork for more vigorous pressure on Biden to crack down on Beijing. They are particularly critical of China’s influence on the World Health Organization.
Biden rejoined the global body on his first day, reversing Trump’s withdrawal from the organization in July over criticism it failed to confront Beijing over the spread of COVID-19.
Sens. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) And Josh Hawley
Joshua (Josh) David Hawley Overnight: Pentagon Says Extremist Groups Are Recruiting ‘Very Aggressive’ Troops | Capitol Guard deployment estimated at 3M | No US combat deaths in Afghanistan for a year | VA Secretary Confirmed Senate Confirms Denis McDonough To Lead VA Under Biden The GOP’s Allegation ‘Prisoner’s Dilemma’ MORE (R-Mo.) Tuesday addressed these criticisms, introducing legislation aimed at withholding US funds from the WHO. Their statement followed the publication of a WHO study they criticized for failing to address Beijing’s role in the spread of the virus.
“The WHO’s mission is to bring public health information to the world so that every country can make the best decisions to protect its citizens,” Scott said in a statement. “The WHO has not only failed its mission, but has failed the world when it comes to the coronavirus. They served as a puppet for the Chinese Communist Party – they parrot misinformation and helped communist China cover up a global pandemic. “
The bill’s introduction coincided with the WHO’s publication of preliminary findings from a study of the origin of COVID-19 in China, which found that the disease was “ most likely ” from animals before hopping on humans, although it was the shortcomings of the global response.
Hawley, considered a potential 2024 presidential candidate, criticized the WHO for prioritizing “the interests of the Chinese Communist Party over building a healthier world.”
Her. Tom Cotton
Tom Bryant CottonOvernight Defense: Pentagon Says Extremist Groups Are ‘Very Aggressive Recruiting Troops’ | Capitol Guard deployment estimated at 3M | No US combat deaths in Afghanistan for a year | VA Secretary Confirmed Senate Confirms Denis McDonough To Lead VA Under Biden The GOP’s Allegation ‘Prisoner’s Dilemma’ MORE (R-Ark.), Also a potential presidential candidate, tweeted in response to the inquiry that “[for] more than a year have been the apologists of the Chinese Communist Party [the WHO] have tried to trace the origin of the coronavirus. “
Former US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley
Nikki HaleyBiden’s administration announces plans to rejoin UN Human Rights Council US will rejoin UN Human Rights Council: report 5 lawyers leave Trump impeachment team ahead of trial: reports MORE, yet another possible Republican presidential candidate, also criticized the WHO investigation, tweeting that it should have focused on “when China knew” about the coronavirus “and why they were mistaking it for the rest of the world …”
Her. Lindsey Graham
Lindsey Olin Graham DOJ to Seek Resignation of Most Trump-Appointed US Lawyers: Report Lawmakers Blame Trump for Riot as Second Impeachment Trial Looms on Sunday – Trump Impeachment Trial, Stimulus Dominate MORE (RS.C.) on Sunday, in an interview with CBS’s Meet the Press, warned against Biden about throwing away Trump’s foreign policy on a wholesale basis, including those related to China.
“I would slow down if I were President Biden and re-evaluate some of these Trump policies and keep them in place if they make sense,” he said.