China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi to Meet US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attends a press conference at the state council information office in Beijing on Sept. 26, 2023. Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi is set to meet with White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Oct. 27, the second day of the Chinese official’s three-day trip to Washington.

“This meeting is consistent with commitments by both sides to maintain this strategic channel of communication as part of ongoing efforts to responsibly manage the relationship,” the White House said in a statement released on Oct. 25.

Mr. Wang will also meet with Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his trip.

It is yet unclear if the Chinese diplomat will speak to President Joe Biden.

The U.S. visit by China’s top diplomat will take place against the backdrop of wars in Ukraine and Israel, the simmering tension between China and the Philippines over the South China Sea, and Beijing’s coercive actions against Taiwan.

It will also come as friction between the two countries continue to heighten, with China recently imposing export bans on several critical minerals, while Washington has stepped up its restrictions on semiconductor exports to China.

Mr. Wang and Mr. Sullivan have met twice in recent months. They met in Vienna in May before meeting again in Malta in September.

According to White House press releases, the two had “substantive, constructive” discussions on the two occasions, and they talked about Russia’s war in Ukraine both times.

National security advisor Jake Sullivan speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington on Sept. 21, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Mr. Wang’s visit comes less than a month before the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in San Francisco, where President Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping could potentially meet. The two leaders previously met in November last year on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia.

‘Unreliable Partner’ 

Two House Republicans are questioning the Biden administration’s decision to allow Mr. Wang to travel to the United States.

In a statement issued on Oct. 25, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Rep. Young Kim (R-Calif.), chairwoman of the Subcommittee on the Indo-Pacific, said the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is an “unreliable partner.”

“Wang Yi’s visit to DC is the first time a Chinese Foreign Minister has visited the United States since 2019. Unfortunately we have seen the Chinese Communist Party become increasingly aggressive during that time period,” the lawmakers wrote.

“From its military aggression against Taiwan and the Philippines, to arbitrarily detaining American citizens like Mark Swidan and holding political prisoners, to coercing countries into debt trap infrastructure projects, the CCP has made clear that it is an unreliable partner.”

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas.) speaks with reporters after the House Republicans meeting securing the GOP nomination for House Speaker in Washington on Oct. 11, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

The two House lawmakers said fentanyl should be included in discussions with Mr. Wang. Mexican cartels have been buying precursor chemicals from China to make the synthetic opioid drug and shipping the finished products to the United States.

“During its meetings with Wang Yi, the Biden administration should not fall for false promises but demand deliverables such as releasing Americans taken hostage in China, stopping the export of fentanyl precursors, and halting its military expansionism in the Indo-Pacific,” they wrote.

Human Rights

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), the ranking Democrat on the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, said Mr. Blinken should raise China’s human rights issues with Mr. Wang, in a series of X posts on Oct. 25.

“CCP leaders must hear a strong and clear message that we support the human rights and freedom of all the people living in the PRC,” said Mr. Krishnamoorthi, referring to China’s official name, the People’s Republic of China.

“There is an ongoing genocide against the Uyghur people. We can do better in enforcing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, and must work with our allies & partners to ensure these products are no longer available around the world.”

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo on Aug. 5, 2022. Richard A. Brooks/AFP/AFP via Getty Images

The ranking Democrat also pointed to China’s oppression in Tibet, where children are taken away from their parents, and the practice of Tibetan Buddhism is suppressed.

“In Hong Kong, Joshua Wong, Jimmy Lai, and others are in prison because they dared to call for free and fair elections. This is a chance to call on [Foreign Minister] Wang Yi to release them immediately and unconditionally, along with all political prisoners in the PRC,” Mr. Krishnamoorthi stated.

Mr. Lai, the former publisher of the now-defunct newspaper Apple Daily, has been incarcerated in Hong Kong since December 2020.

According to the Washington-based advocacy group Hong Kong Democracy Council, there are currently 1,672 political prisoners in Hong Kong.

“U.S. foreign policy must prioritize human rights,” Mr. Krishnamoorthi concluded. “I expect and look forward to strong human rights advocacy/action in all diplomatic engagement with CCP officials.”