Blinken, Yang Hold Testy Phone Call With G7 Ongoing

Following a phone call earlier today between US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken - who is in the UK for the G7 summit - and senior Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi, the former tweets: "Constructive discussion today with the People's Republic of China Director Yang Jiechi on pressing global issues. We will continue to conduct practical, results-oriented diplomacy with Beijing on global challenges."

• Wires reporting that the two discussed cooperation on denuclearisation, as well as policies towards North Korea. State Dep't also says Blinken encouraged China to stop 'pressure campaign' on Taiwan.
• Official - harshly worded - Chinese report on the callsays that "China urges the United States to respect facts and science, refrain from politicizing COVID-19 origin tracing and concentrate on international anti-pandemic cooperation," in a clear effort to try to dissuade the US gov't from pressing an investigation into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. There has been rising (as yet unproven) speculation among certain Western outlets and politicians that the virus did not emerge from a Wuhan wet market, but in fact due to a leak at Wuhan Institute of Virology.
• Chinese readout also states that "Yang said the US side should fix the serious human rights violations on its own territory, instead of willfully interfering in the internal affairs of other countries under the pretext of so-called human rights."