Beijing, 18 August 2021 (TDI): On Monday, Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, had a telephonic conversation with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at his request. The core of this virtual meeting was to discuss the ongoing situation in Afghanistan and U.S-China relations.
Blinken for his part appreciated China’s participation in the Doha meeting on the Afghan issue. ‘As the Afghan situation is changing, the US recognizes that the fate of Afghanistan should be in the hands of the Afghan people and that the Taliban should leave extremist practices and should vow to assure the safety of those who want to leave Afghanistan’, said Blinken.
He further added that he believes that China will play a major role in smooth power transfer and the affirmation of an inclusive government in Afghanistan.
Wang Yi underlined the stance of China on the issue and said that China seeks stability and prosperity in the region thus it is ready to settle down with the US on the issue so that any future war can be prevented in Afghanistan.
He also advised the US to opt for a pragmatic policy towards China and very clearly highlighted the role the US needs to play in preventing chaos in Afghanistan. ‘The hasty U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan has caused a severely adverse impact on the situation in Afghanistan and it would not be responsible if it continues to create new problems, said Wang.
Wang continued and said that ‘China and the US as the two leading nations and significant members of the security council, the international community expect us to come to one page while dealing with world issues’. He further added that the US and China need to coordinate and cooperate in the face of numerous global problems and critical regional hotspot concerns.
Blinken also agreed that peaceful existence is the shared aim of the two parties.
Whilst the differences between China and the US are evident, he said that he believes that they can be constructively handled in the future.
