Ahead of Blinken visit, China says US meddling in its affairs: Report

Beijing: Just ahead of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to China, Beijing has accused Washington of repeatedly interfering in its internal affairs and undermining China’s interests.

“The United States continues pushing forward the strategy of containing China, keeps adopting erroneous words and actions that interfere in China’s internal affairs, smear China’s image and undermine China’s interests,” the state news agency Xinhua quoted an unnamed representative of the ministry as saying before Blinken’s arrival in China on Wednesday.

“China resolutely opposes such moves and has taken strong countermeasures,” the report said.

It is true that relations have stabilised since the last telephone conversation between head of state Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden in April, however “there are still significant negative factors in the bilateral relationship,” according to the Xinhua report.

The ministry cited, as the most recent example, Blinken’s accusations that China is flooding global markets with overcapacity in areas such as electric cars and renewable energies.

The ministry said this “so-called ‘overcapacity’ is [a] misleading narrative … The real intention is to kneecap China’s industrial development and put the US in a more advantageous position in market competition. It’s another example of outright economic coercion and bullying,” the agency reported.

Blinken plans to visit Shanghai and Beijing on his three-day trip. The talks are expected to focus on improving communication and reducing the risk of misjudgments and conflicts, according to preliminary reports from Washington.

Blinken also plans to speak clearly and concisely about issues that cause the US concern, such as China’s human rights situation, unfair economic and trade practices or China’s support for Russia’s defence industry. The tense situation in the Middle East is also likely to be discussed.

In November, Biden and Xi met in California after a year without direct contact. This was followed by talks between members of both governments at the highest level.

Earlier this month, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen travelled to China to meet representatives of US companies and the Chinese government.

Despite the tensions, Xinhua, quoting the ministry, said today’s situation is different than a year ago, when bilateral relations were at a historic low.

IANS