The two held eight hours of talks stretching over Wednesday and Thursday in the Austrian capital, ending an unofficial pause in high-level contacts since the United States shot down a Chinese surveillance balloon that had traveled across the country in January and February.
Both sides described the previously unannounced meeting as "candid, substantive and constructive," covering topics including the Russian invasion of Ukraine and Taiwan, according to the White House -- two of the most sensitive subjects in the frosty relationship between the world's top two economies.
Washington has repeatedly warned China against offering any military assistance to Russia, and is closely watching its moves over Taiwan -- which Beijing claims as its own territory.
The self-ruled island lives under the constant fear of a Chinese invasion, and Beijing has stepped up its rhetoric and military activity around it in recent years.
Wang "comprehensively expounded upon China's solemn position" on Taiwan, Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua said, adding the two diplomats "agreed to continue to make good use of this strategic channel for communication."
- Getting past balloon incident -
The balloon incident, which China labelled an accident but which Washington viewed as an act of espionage, caused Secretary of State Antony Blinken to cancel a long-planned trip to meet his counterpart in Beijing.
Just after the incident, Blinken met with Wang on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, during which he warned China not to repeat such an "irresponsible act."
Wang in turn said that their countries' relations had been damaged by how Washington reacted.
But the apparent diplomatic thaw in Vienna is likely to reignite speculation about a rescheduling of Blinken's trip or potential meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
The pair last spoke on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Indonesia in November 2022.
Asked about the issue Wednesday, Biden said there had been progress.
- US seeks cooperation on drugs -
In a background briefing for reporters, a senior US administration official stressed that just having the Sullivan-Wang meeting was a step forward.
The idea was to "try to find a few issues where there are some overlapping interests," the official said.
"We've made no secret that we see maintaining channels of communication as particularly important in times of tension, that it's important to manage competition," the official said, adding that both sides agreed on that.
Sullivan and Wang discussed Indo-Pacific regional security issues, and the top Biden aide pressed Wang for better cooperation in fighting drug trafficking, the official said.
Washington says Chinese firms supply the chemicals that Mexican drug cartels use to make fentanyl, responsible for a massive spike in drug overdose deaths in the United States.
"We raised our concern about the lack of communication on this issue and pressed for constructive engagement," the official said.
On Taiwan, the official said the United States stressed that the two sides had managed the issue "for over 40 years without conflict" and that Washington did not want to see any unilateral change to the "status quo" in the situation.
- It takes two -
Chinese diplomats have kept up a steady drumbeat of criticism against America, and Xi made a rare direct rebuke of Washington in March, accusing "Western countries led by the United States" of trying to undermine his country.
Biden has said he will not do China any favors in the competition between the two superpowers, but has vowed he would do everything possible to keep the rivalry from descending into conflict.
Sullivan, in a major speech on April 27, outlined the US strategy to build a "fairer, more durable global economic order" -- and singled China out for mention.
"We're looking to manage competition responsibly and seeking to work together with China where we can," he said.
EU looks for united voice on China
Stockholm (AFP) May 12, 2023 -
EU foreign ministers meet Friday to seek a common approach on lessening Europe's reliance on China and coaxing Beijing to take a tougher stance on Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Brussels is urging the European Union's 27 nations to get on the same page on how they deal with China as a more assertive Beijing flexes its influence on the world stage.
Speaking at the European Parliament this week, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz admitted relations were getting tougher as "rivalry and competition on the side of China have certainly increased".
He backed calls for a "smart de-risking" by slashing Europe's dependence on China for key materials, but there is no appetite to sever all ties with the world's second-biggest economy.
"There is a desire to avoid confrontation with China, even if disputes are multiplying," said Elvire Fabry from the Jacques Delors Institute think tank.
Most pressing among those disagreements is China's refusal to condemn its close ally Russia and its invasion of Ukraine, or to press Moscow to stop its attack.
Brussels has enraged Beijing by proposing to restrict exports of sensitive tech to eight Chinese firms suspected of shipping it on to Russia.
On a European tour this week, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang warned Beijing would take the "necessary response" if the EU moved ahead with any sanctions.
In Berlin, Qin clashed over Ukraine with German counterpart Annalena Baerbock, who insisted China's proclaimed "neutrality means taking the side of the aggressor".
French foreign minister Catherine Colonna sought to soften the tone when she met Qin by insisting China had an important role to play for "global peace and stability" in efforts to mediate.
- Partner, competitor or rival? -
On a trip to China last month, French President Emmanuel Macron opened up EU fissures by saying Europe should not automatically follow US policy on Taiwan and should avoid "crises that aren't ours".
That stirred fierce criticism from some other European allies, which see the United States as a security guarantor against Russia.
Friday's meeting of foreign ministers in Stockholm is not meant to reach any concrete conclusions. But the hope is the talks can help nudge the EU towards greater unity in its ongoing efforts to grapple with the challenges posed by Beijing.
"The important thing is not to prevent China from becoming a world power, it is to manage how China will use this power," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Thursday.
Currently, the EU officially categorises China as simultaneously a partner, competitor and rival, and there is no plan to tear up that approach.
But EU officials say the emphasis could now move increasingly to managing the rivalry rather than working together.
The EU ministers will follow up their China discussion with a meeting on Saturday with counterparts from the Asia-Pacific region.
Beijing will once again be the elephant in the room as talks turn to security issues, including tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
But a senior EU official said the meeting would be above all about "building partnerships".
"There is no question of seeking an alignment between the participants against Russia during this meeting and we must maintain the status quo between China and Taiwan to avoid an escalation," he said.
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