Blinken Will Be Blinking In China
Pathetic U.S. Sec. State's Visit Demonstrate Hubris and Ignorance
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23 April 2024 (Tuesday)
Blinken Will Be Blinking In China
Pathetic U.S. Sec. State’s Visit Demonstrate Hubris and Ignorance
By Wendell Minnick (Whiskey Mike) 顏文德
TAIPEI - According to the U.S. Department of State:
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken will travel to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) April 24-26. The Secretary will meet with senior PRC officials in Shanghai and Beijing to discuss a range of bilateral, regional, and global issues, including the crisis in the Middle East, Russia’s war against Ukraine, cross-Strait issues, and the South China Sea. The Secretary will also discuss ongoing work to fulfill the commitments made by Presidents Biden and Xi at the Woodside Summit in November on resuming counternarcotics cooperation, military-to-military communication, artificial intelligence, and strengthening people-to-people ties, and will reiterate the importance of the United States and the PRC responsibly managing competition, even in areas where our two countries disagree.
A friend of mine, former U.S. State Department who served in China and Taiwan, thought that this satirical and hypothetical conversation would occur between Blinken and Wang Yi, Director of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee Foreign Affairs Commission Office.
Blinken: We have information that the Chinese side may well be supporting the Russian war in Ukraine. We ask that you cease any such activities. As the President has told the Chinese side recently, the U.S. feels very strongly about this and must advise that if we see a continuation of Chinese cooperation with Russia that assists in pursuing an immoral and outrageous war against a sovereign state, there will be consequences.
Wang Yi: The Chinese position on Ukraine is well known to you and the international community. China does not support the war in Ukraine and has consistently called on all sides to exercise self-restraint. China's conduct of bilateral relations and trade with Russia is wholly appropriate, and not in conflict with commonly understood international law nor with any obligations resulting from United Nations decisions. As a sovereign nation, China will pursue its legitimate interests as it sees fit, and will not accept false and hypocritical allegations from any party, especially one that has fanned the flames of war through its own actions.
And that brings me to the topic of Taiwan. Secretary Blinken, the Chinese position on Taiwan is crystal clear, and we have discussed it between ourselves on many occasions over the past three years. Taiwan represents the fundamental barrier to full mutual understanding and cooperation between our two nations, and is the most dangerous conflict between us. It behooves us both to act responsibly, for China's principles regarding Taiwan are well-known and not subject to change. Taiwan is an inalienable part of China, as evidenced by history and recognized formally by the overwhelming majority of the world's nations.
But the U.S. side has been adopting measures toward Taiwan that are in flagrant conflict with its long-standing undertakings and even formal commitments to China. We ask you to think carefully about this, to reflect upon your deeds, and to return to the correct path. In this regard, I must register China's strong objection to the legislation just passed by the House of Representatives that provides for substantial U.S. assistance to Taiwan. I think we both know that such assistance is intended to emphasize transfers of military items, and that as such it is at odds with U.S. commitments made upon normalization of diplomatic relations with China in 1979 and in the August 17, 1982 joint communique regarding U.S. transfer of arms to Taiwan. We also note that there have been many reports that U.S. military personnel are now spending significant periods of time in Taiwan in a so-called "advisory" and "training" capacity. At a time when the U.S. side is violating openly its solemn commitments to China, it is extremely hypocritical for the U.S. side to raise objections to China's conduct of normal state-to-state relations with Russia and to threaten so-called "consequences." One doesn't know whether to laugh or cry at the arrogance of the American side's double standards in this respect.