July 26, 2021 – (TDI): The Deputy Secretary of the United States of America, Wendy R. Sherman officially visited the People’s Republic of China for two days; July 25 and July 26. During her visit, she met State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and other PRC officials.
Besides expressing condolences over the death of several people in the destructing floods in Henan province of China, she discussed various issues with State Councilor Wang, emphasizing the importance of having open communication between both states. They exchanged views about how to set an environment for responsible management of the bilateral US-China relations. Deputy Secretary Sherman noted the firm competition between both nations, but it needs to remain just a competition and not morph into a conflict, she expressed.
Deputy Secretary Sherman also talked about the concerns the US has over those Chinese actions that contrast with the values and interests of the US and clash with the international order. Human rights situations, especially the anti-democratic crackdown in Hong Kong, the currently occurring genocide in Xinjiang, the human rights violations in Tibet, and the restriction on media and press were part of her discussion. She also talked about Chinese actions in Taiwan Strait, in the South China Sea, the East China Sea, and especially in the cyber domain.
Another issue raised by Deputy Secretary Sherman was the detention of Americans and Canadians in China due to exit bans. Also, she addressed the Chinese noncooperation with World Health Organization (WHO) and asked China to allow the second investigation in China for tracing COVID-19’s origin. She reiterated the significance of bilateral collaboration in domains of mutual interest, including climate crisis, counternarcotic, nonproliferation, and regional issues including DPRK, Iran, Afghanistan, and Burma.
