No Sign Of Sino-US Thaw Following Pelosi Taiwan Trip

Speaking at an event in South Africa, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has criticised Beijing's decision sever lines of communication with Washington in response to US Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi's (D-CA) trip to Taiwan.

• On Beijing's withdrawn from a bilateral climate dialogue: "It is deeply unfortunate that China, for now, has decided to stop that engagement."
• Blinken: "China ceasing cooperation with the United States on climate change is punishing the entire world."
  • According to local journalist Eric Bates, Blinken said the move will adversely affect African countries, as the US and China have the highest emissions.
• On security and military communication, Blinken said: "What I’m hearing from countries around the region and countries around the world is that they expect us to maintain our channels of communication. They respect – expect us to responsibly manage our differences. That’s what the United States is determined to do."
• Blinken on the Ukraine war: "If we allow a big country to bully a smaller one, to invade it, it will be 'open season' around the world."
• Blinken's remarks come as concern increases in the West that Beijing may pursue an economic embargo of Taiwan as a punitive response to Pelosi's Taiwan trip.
  • Stanley Chao, China business and geopolitical analyst: “In a doomsday scenario, China could possibly sanction Taiwanese company Foxconn, the world’s largest contract manufacturer and the largest private employer in China, resulting in billions of dollars of lost revenue, thousands of Taiwanese jobs lost, and double-digit percentage losses on Taiwan’s annual GDP.”