China Embassy in US refutes report of 'high level' meeting to normalise ties

The Chinese embassy in the United States on January 22 refuted claims that Beijing was attempting to hold a ‘high-level meeting’ with the US to normaliz=se ties after President Joe Biden took office on January 20. “The report does not hold true to facts,” the Chinese embassy to the US wrote on its website, citing a Wall Street Journal report that claimed, “China has handed a proposal to reset the troubled US-China relationship by sending Politburo member Yang Jiechi to Washington”. It added, “Ambassador Cui Tiankai suggested the idea in letters to US officials and through conversations with intermediaries.” The report backed the proposal citing officials close to the knowledge of the initiative.

Chinese embassy, on Saturday, debunked the report, saying that the Chinese government "never wrote such letters". It further condemned the report as unverified, stating: "We hope the media concerned respect the facts and report on Sino-US relations in an objective and responsible manner". The embassy’s statement asserted that the two nations, regardless, must focus on bilateral ties and cooperation for a stable relationship that was dismantled during the Trump administration. This, given that within just 36 hours of Joe Biden’s inaugural ceremony, China sanctioned at least 28 US high profile officials, most of them from the Trump administration.

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Sanctions against US officials 

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced executive order at 1 am Beijing time Thursday. China’s state-backed Global Times and other press outlets published articles in both English and Chinese about the sanctions on the US. “US officials and politicians cannot be allowed to make a profit from China while attacking China. Washington’s ‘revolving door’ is well known,” one of the articles on Global Times read. In the aftermath of the ban, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying took to Twitter and wrote: “The people’s republic has suffered and hope to see ties return to the right track at an early date,” She added, “‘A new day for the US, as said by American media,  we wish the same for China-US relations".

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