Janet Yellen, U.S. Treasury Secretary
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen wrapped up a four-day visit to China on Sunday, saying her second meeting with senior Chinese officials was “immediate” and “productive” and helped to stabilize the often tense relationship .
Before leaving, Yellen told a news conference that the U.S. and China remained at odds on many issues, but she expressed belief that her visit strengthened U.S. efforts to “make the U.S.-China relationship stronger.”
Yellen told a meeting at the U.S. embassy in Beijing that there were “significant differences between the U.S. and China,” citing concerns in Washington about what she called “unfair economic practices” and recent punitive measures targeting U.S. companies .
“But President Joe Biden and I don’t think there’s a great power struggle relationship between the United States and China. We think the world is big enough for our two countries to prosper,” she added.
Washington is trying to mend relations between the world’s two largest economies as U.S.-China relations sour over security concerns including Taiwan, a U.S. embargo on high-tech exports and China’s state-led industrial policies.
U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken visited China last month, the first by a top U.S. diplomat since Biden became president, and U.S. climate envoy John Kerry is also expected to visit China this month.
The U.S. diplomatic effort comes ahead of a possible meeting between President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit in New Delhi in September or the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting scheduled for November in San Francisco.
Ye Lin said that the purpose of my visit is to establish and deepen relations with China’s new economic team, reduce the risk of misunderstanding, and pave the way for cooperation in areas such as climate change and debt crisis.
“I think we’ve made some progress and we can have healthy economic relationships that are good for us and the world,” she added, noting that she expects more and more regular contacts.
She said Chinese officials had raised concerns about the expected executive order restricting overseas investment, but she assured them that any such measures would be narrowed and implemented in a transparent manner, with public input included in the decision-making process.
Yellen added that she has told Chinese officials that they can raise concerns about U.S. actions, that Washington is willing to explain them, and that “in some cases, unintended consequences of our actions may be addressed unless those actions are carefully followed up.” guide.”
Disengagement would be catastrophic
Yellen met with officials including China’s Premier Li Qiang and People’s Bank of China Deputy Governor Pan Gongsheng, whom she dubs the head of the People’s Bank of China, in an apparent confirmation of his promotion expectations.
She also met with US companies working in China, as well as climate finance and economic experts.
In meetings with Chinese officials, Yellen urged greater cooperation on economic and climate issues, while criticizing China’s “punitive measures” against U.S. companies.
She reiterated that Washington would not seek to disengage from the Chinese economy because “it would be disastrous for both countries and destabilize the world”.
The U.S. has imposed export restrictions aimed at limiting Beijing’s ability to acquire electronic chips that Washington fears could be used for military purposes and is considering steps to limit U.S. investment in sensitive areas of China.
But U.S. lawmakers want stronger action. A bipartisan group has proposed giving the administration sweeping powers to block billions of dollars in U.S. investment flowing to China.
Yellen said she assured her Chinese counterparts that any investment restrictions “will be targeted, well-targeted and limited to the few areas where we have national security concerns”.
Responding to a question about plans for new currencies by BRICS nations Brazil, India, Russia and China, Yellen said she expected the dollar to continue to dominate international transactions.
Regarding the Russia-Ukraine war, Yellen told Chinese reporters that it was “necessary” for Chinese companies to avoid providing tangible support to Moscow in the Moscow war or allowing them to evade sanctions.
Both sides played down hopes for a breakthrough in the talks, while praising the opportunity for a direct diplomatic meeting.
Yellen said: “One visit cannot solve the challenges we face overnight. But I expect this visit will open a flexible and constructive line of communication.”