Have US, China dialed it down? Antony Blinken meets Xi Jinping in Beijing

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. The meeting was being crucially watched as it came amid simmering US-China tensions. The meeting between Blinken and Xi started around 4:30 pm local time (2:00 pm IST), Chinese state media Xinhua said. It is being said that the meeting, on the final day of Blinken’s two-day visit, could help to facilitate a summit between Xi and US President Joe Biden in November this year. It is also being said that the Xi-Jinping meeting will bring more stability between Washington and Beijing. ‘Hope Blinken’s visit will stabilise China-US relations’ At the start of the meeting, Xi said: “The two sides have had candid and in-depth discussions.” Addressing Blinken, Xi said, “I hope that through this visit, Mr. Secretary, you will make more positive contributions to stabilizing China-US relations.” Blinken’s China visit is the first by a US secretary of the state in five years. As per reports, the meeting Xi was not confirmed before Blinken’s arrival in Beijing and now it is seen as a positive sighn that talks are going well. Earlier in the day, Blinken held extensive discussions with China’s top diplomat Wang Yi. Describing the US-China relationship as being at a low point, Wang said the root cause was the United States’ wrong perception of China. During the meeting, Blinken underscored the importance of open communication channels to manage their competition during more than three hours of talks with Wang, the state department said, calling their conversation as “productive.” “We must take a responsible attitude toward the people, history and the world, and reverse the downward spiral of US-China relations,” Wang said during the meeting with Blinken. Wang also urged the US to stop speculating on threats from China, abandon its “suppression” of China’s scientific and technological development, and refrain from interfering in its internal affairs, according to Chinese state media. On Sunday, Blinken had a “candid, substantive, and constructive talks” with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Sunday. During the 7-1/2 hours talks with Qin, Blinken stressed “the need to reduce the risk of misperception and miscalculation”, the State Department said. Both Qin and Blinken emphasised the importance of making it easier for their citizens to visit, and agreed on working to increase passenger flights, which boosted Chinese airline shares. They also expressed a desire to stabilise bilateral ties despite what one US official called their “profound” differences, and agreed that Qin would visit Washington to continue the conversation, though no date was announced. “This is going to be a process of sustained diplomacy,” one senior State Department official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said on Sunday. Blinken’s trip to China was postponed in February after a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew over US airspace. With inputs from agencies Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.