![]() Hass said China’s leader, Xi Jinping, can ill afford to let Sino-U.S. “This raises questions about the quality of coordination within China’s security system.” “The spy balloon incident is discordant with the overall messaging,” he added. “The overall direction of China’s recent diplomatic messaging to the United States has been to seek to lower tensions,” said Ryan Hass, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a former National Security Council director for China. How an apparent Chinese spy balloon ended up over the United States amid such a backdrop hints at divisions within the Chinese government about its strategy toward its chief geopolitical competitor, analysts say. Liu He, the country’s vice premier, last month attended the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, to woo foreign investment and declare that China was open for business again. One highlight was an appeal from the incoming Chinese foreign minister, Qin Gang, to build “mutual understanding and affinity between the two peoples” in remarks he made last month upon leaving his post as ambassador to the United States.Ĭhina has been looking to reduce tensions overseas to focus its energy on repairing its beleaguered economy and transition out of Covid-induced isolation. In the months before the balloon episode, China’s diplomatic corps had toned down its typically acerbic rhetoric about Washington. Shrinking levels of contact between the two governments in recent years have made it more difficult for them to test assumptions about each other’s intentions during diplomatic crises, she added. While there has been no indication the balloon poses a serious military or intelligence threat to the United States, the symbolism of a Chinese craft drifting over the continental United States has added a new element of volatility to a relationship that is at the core of the world’s most pressing challenges, like maintaining peace in the Taiwan Strait, rebuilding post-pandemic economies and combating climate change. Blinken’s cancellation of his trip, but suggested China’s leaders believed the Biden administration had blown the episode out of proportion. The brief summary of their call did not mention the balloon or Mr. Blinken in a phone call late Friday that “China is a responsible country and has always strictly abided by international law,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on its website. Wang Yi, the top official in China’s foreign policy hierarchy, told Mr. The Pentagon said it was used for “intelligence-gathering,” whereas China said it was a civilian vessel used for scientific research and that it had strayed off course. The two countries have issued competing claims about the nature of the airship. On Saturday afternoon, the United States shot down the balloon off the coast of the Carolinas while it was still in American territorial waters. The balloon has fueled bipartisan outrage in the United States and has given the Biden administration little room to maneuver - even as China uncharacteristically expressed regret for the vessel’s appearance. ![]() Blinken’s decision on Friday to cancel his trip, has again exposed the fragility of a relationship between two powers locked in an increasingly tense rivalry for military, geopolitical and technological dominance. The discovery of what American military officials called a “high-altitude surveillance balloon” over Montana this week, and Mr. Blinken to Beijing this weekend was expected to build on that progress.Īll it took was a balloon to upend everything. has shot down the Chinese spy balloon.Īfter years of deepening mistrust and simmering tensions, ties between the United States and China appeared poised for a modest rebound after the meeting of the two nations’ leaders at a summit last November and recent efforts by Beijing to stabilize its relations with the world.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |