Why did he and she come one after another?, The second Biden cabinet minister is coming to China, less than a month of tension | China US | Yellen

On July 3rd, the News Office of the Chinese Ministry of Finance announced that, as agreed by both China and the United States, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will visit China from July 6th to 9th. This will be Yellen's first visit to China as Minister of Finance, and she will also become the second US ministerial level official to visit China in the near future. The public opinion believes that this visit shows that China and the United States are attempting to further deepen communication and stabilize tense relations. However, some major differences between China and the United States may not be resolved through a single visit.

Strengthen communication frequency

On July 6th, Yellen will arrive in Beijing for a long-awaited visit to China. The outside world believes that Yellen's visit is of great significance at a time of increasing global economic uncertainty.

According to senior officials from the US Treasury Department, the purpose of this visit is to deepen and strengthen communication frequency between the two countries, stabilize bilateral relations, avoid communication barriers, and expand cooperation if possible.

Yellen will also become the second US ministerial level official to visit Beijing in the near future.

From June 18th to 19th, U.S. Secretary of State Blinken visited China and met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee Wang Yi, and State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang.

This visit is the first visit by a US Secretary of State to China since 2018, and also the highest level official visit to China since the Biden administration took office. After the visit, officials from China and the United States said that Antony Blinken's visit was fruitful and that the two sides had a frank dialogue on a series of issues.

At present, Yellen's specific itinerary has not been announced yet. However, according to US Treasury officials, Yellen will meet with some senior Chinese officials and executives of US companies in China.

Another government official told Reuters that Yellen may hold high-level economic talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, who will take over economic affairs from Liu He. Recently, Yellen also stated in an interview that China has recently appointed a group of senior officials, many of whom have had little interaction with US officials. "I think it is particularly important to establish some private relationships," he said.

Hope to rebuild contact

The public has high expectations for Yellen's visit.

CNN reported that Yellen has repeatedly expressed the Biden administration's willingness to deepen communication between the United States and China and cool tensions between the two countries. Another analysis suggests that Yellen has always been more rational in US China relations and has a relatively friendly attitude towards China.

In January of this year, Yellen held talks with the then Vice Premier of the State Council, Liu He, in Zurich, Switzerland. The atmosphere was friendly and harmonious, sending positive signals.

In April this year, Yellen emphasized the importance of maintaining relations with China and stated that decoupling would be a huge mistake.

Last week, Yellen reiterated in an interview with Microsoft National Broadcasting Corporation that US China relations are crucial to the entire world. She said that "healthy competition" can benefit workers and businesses in both countries. She also stated that she hopes that this visit to China will establish new connections, and the two countries "need to discuss their differences" to eliminate misunderstandings.

As high-level U.S. officials increase the frequency of contacts with China, U.S. President Biden also said in June that he hopes to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in the near future.

Still shrouded in dark clouds

At present, China US relations are at a delicate moment. The public opinion believes that although the latest developments have released positive signals of stable relations between the two countries, Yellen's trip is still shrouded in dark clouds.

Just as Yellen was preparing to visit Beijing, the Biden administration was still contemplating a series of measures to suppress China.

For example, the Biden administration is preparing to launch an executive order that will strictly restrict American companies from investing in certain high-tech industries in China.

In addition, the Biden administration is weighing further tightening export control measures and imposing additional restrictions on semiconductor exports to China, with the intention of weakening China's ability to develop advanced artificial intelligence.

At the same time, American officials, including Yellen, have repeatedly called on American multinational corporations to transfer their supply chains to regions outside of China.

In this context, it is speculated that Yellen may engage in discussions with China in Beijing on a wide range of topics such as macroeconomic policies, debt issues, climate change, and other sensitive issues, including human rights issues, China's investigation into Micron Corporation, and China's recent foreign relations law.

The Wall Street Journal stated that whether the two countries can establish a new normal and avoid falling back into a vicious cycle of mutual criticism and countermeasures during the visit of US officials such as Yellen to China will be put to the test.

Some comments suggest that whether the US can view China's development from an objective and rational perspective in the future is related to the direction of US policy towards China, determines the direction of US China relations, and will largely determine the future of the world.