AP: Sec State Blinken To Travel To China June 18

AP has reported that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China on June 18 for meetings with senior officials, including Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and "possibly President Xi Jinping."

• US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told the US-China Business Council’s Board of Directors yesterday that she "...recognized the importance of trade and investment with China, given deep integration between the two economies….”
• Blinken's trip would be the highest-level visit by a US official since 2018 and mark a significant milestone in efforts to reduce tensions but serious differences remain in issues related to defence.
• Semafor reported this morning that, despite talks of a thaw, “on core military issues, China doesn’t seem interested in engagement," adding that “China has resolutely spurned [White House National Security Advisor Jake] Sullivan’s overture from last Friday to engage in “unconditional” arms control talks with the U.S.”
• Semafor: “This all points to a seriously dangerous trend in U.S.-China relations in which superficial visits and photo ops take place. But the consequential and dangerous issues — including nuclear proliferation... go unaddressed. And the world is becoming increasingly more unstable as a result.”