US national security advisor Jake Sullivan, seen here in August 2021, will meet in Europe with China’s chief diplomat Yang Jiechi. – AFP photo
US President Joe Biden’s national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, will meet this week in Europe with China’s top diplomat, the White House said Tuesday.
Sullivan and Yang Jiechi will meet in Zurich to follow up on a September 9 phone call between Biden and President Xi Jinping on how “to responsibly manage the competition” between the two countries, the White House said in a statement.
A spokeswoman for the White House said the meeting would take place Wednesday.
Sullivan’s trip continues an uptick in contact between Beijing and Washington, as Biden argues for establishing “guardrails” for the growing contest between the two powers.
On Monday, US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said she would soon be talking to her Chinese counterpart, as a massive trade dispute rumbles on with no end in sight.
After the Zurich meeting, Sullivan is due to visit Brussels and Paris, where he will also “debrief his meeting with Director Yang to our European allies and partners,” the White House said.
In his 90-minute call with Xi last month — the second in his presidency — Biden said he wanted to avoid “unintended conflict.” – AFP