"Turbulence" in relations threatens US-China security meeting

BEIJING (Reuters) – A diplomatic and security meeting between China and the United States may not be held next month due to tensions in relations, informed sources said, which could lead to a deterioration of relations.

Beijing and Washington are wrestling with a booming trade war that has cost them more and more severely on imports.

Tensions between the world's two largest economies now go beyond trade. US President Donald Trump has accused Beijing this week of interfering in the legislative elections, marking what US officials told Reuters: a new step in the Washington campaign to put pressure. China.

On the military side, China was exasperated by the United States, which imposed sanctions on the People's Liberation Army (PLA) for buying arms from Russia and China's sacred territory.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and US Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis were due to visit Beijing next month for the US-China Diplomatic and Security Dialogue in Washington. restart of previous high level discussions under previous administrations.

However, both sources said this meeting was now in doubt.

"There is a lot of uncertainty because of the turbulence in the relationship," said one of the sources.

The second source said that the People's Liberation Army was particularly unhappy with the United States because of US sanctions imposed on the Chinese military and US support to Taiwan, including the approval of 39, a new series of arms sales this week.

"The PLA is tired of Taiwan's problem. They are more and more uncompromising about it, "said the source.

Both sources spoke on condition of anonymity because the trips were not made public. They also warned that the meetings could still proceed as planned and that no final decision has been taken.

The Chinese Ministry of Defense said it was discussing dialogue with the United States.

"China and the United States have always maintained the communication on diplomatic dialogue and security," he said in a statement to Reuters, without giving more details.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a brief statement sent to Reuters that the two countries were "in close contact" about the dialogue and that, if it had any other information, it would divulge it as soon as possible.

The US Embassy in Beijing declined to comment, as did the US State Department. The Pentagon said it was not discussing future travel plans.

Decoupling?

In its latest TV show on Wednesday, Trump accused China of wanting to interfere in the November 6 congressional elections, saying Beijing did not want his Republican party and him to do good business because of his perverse political stance. towards trade.

While China has denounced what it has called its "slander", it has so far refused to take direct action to retaliate.

However, prior to Trump's remarks, Beijing canceled a series of military talks with Washington over sanctions imposed on the Chinese military and denied a US warship permission to visit Hong Kong in October.

The top Chinese government diplomat, State Councilor Wang Yi, said on Friday that there was "no reason to panic" about the friction between Beijing and Washington, but warned that the China would not be subject to blackmail or commercial pressure.

President Xi Jinping said this week that with the rise of unilateralism and trade protectionism, China should embark on the path of self-reliance, a surprising goal for a country who has sought to project itself on the world stage and extols the benefits of globalization. free exchange.

China had already tried to reduce its dependence on foreign technology through its "Made in China 2025" initiative, although it has openly extolled the plan earlier this year in the face of backlash from the United States.

"Divorce is the word I use," Tu Xinquan, a trade expert at the Beijing University of Commerce and International Economics, recently told Reuters, who advised the Chinese government.

"Now, most people think that Trump is trying to contain China. Many government officials think this way.

Last week, Jack Ma, chairman of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, said that bilateral trade frictions could last two decades and that the company could no longer deliver on its promise to create a million US jobs .

"I think there are leaders in the US government who believe that as long as the Chinese system is not ready to change, the best scenario for the United States is a gradual decoupling of economies," Tim said. Stratford, Managing Partner of Law The Covington & Burling Company's Beijing office and a former US diplomat, said in a recent podcast.

China has insisted on resolving all its disputes with the United States.

Ruan Zongze, a former Chinese diplomat at the Institute for International Studies in China, a think tank affiliated with the Foreign Ministry, said it was "unrealistic" to think that the two countries could "decouple" according to their interconnection .

"It's like two people arguing," Ruan said. "Can you really solve this problem if you stop talking to yourself?"