In what has been the highest-level meeting with U.S. officials in some time, State Councilor Wang Yi met with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan May 10th and 11th in Vienna. The short release from the Chinese side indicates that Wang Yi underlined the importance of the Taiwan situation and had a candid, in-depth, substantive, and constructive discussion on promoting Sino-US relations to remove obstacles, stop the decline, and stabilize the relationship. The two sides also exchanged views on the Asian-Pacific situation. The White House readout similarly said that, “The two sides had candid, substantive, and constructive discussions on key issues….”
The meeting is likely part of a broader outreach of American officials to China. Bloomberg reports that US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, and climate envoy John Kerry are all planning trips to China in the coming period, which followed a meeting between US Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang a few days ago. Additionally, Yellen and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan have been saying the US doesn’t want to sever economic ties — just address the possible “national security concerns.”
