US says it will maintain dialogue with China despite balloon burst

WASHINGTON: The top US diplomat said Wednesday that the US would try to maintain communications with China despite cracks over surveillance balloons.

Despite the cancellation of Secretary of State Anthony Brinken’s visit this month, the United States and China “never stopped communicating and trying to understand each other,” said his deputy Wendy Sherman. said.

Using the People’s Republic of China acronym, Sherman said, “We will maintain open communication with China so that we can responsibly manage competition between the two countries.”

“I see no confrontation with China. I believe in the power of diplomacy to prevent miscalculations that could lead to conflict,” she said in a speech at the Brookings Institution.

Referring to talk among US hawks to pull the US away from the Chinese economy, Sherman said, “We’re not talking about decoupling everywhere. We’re talking about removing risks if it makes sense.” I will definitely do it,” he said.

But she said the United States would remain firm on China’s concerns, including human rights in Hong Kong, Tibet and Xinjiang, the use of “economic coercion” and “threatening actions” against Taiwan.

Sherman did not answer questions about whether Blinken would meet with China’s top foreign policy official, Wang Yi, when he attends the Munich Security Conference later this week.

However, she indicated that Blinken’s trip to China had been postponed rather than cancelled, and said she was “hoping to get it back on schedule.”

President Joe Biden ordered the balloon to be shot down after it passed over US territory, including areas with significant military installations.US officials said it was a surveillance balloon but provided limited information. said no.

Beijing claimed the balloons were for weather monitoring and got lost, and accused the United States of sending its own balloons over China, a claim Washington denied.

Tensions soared last year after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan.

Pelosi’s successor, Republican Kevin McCarthy, has said he would also visit Taiwan, which the US supports through military sales, but Taiwan has not confirmed.

“We will continue to support Taiwan and hope that China will not use the visit of lawmakers to Taiwan as a pretext for military action,” Sherman said.