US delegates to visit China to ‘reduce military and economic tensions’

BEIJING - The White House has said that the US Deputy National Security Adviser Thomas Donilon and National Economic Council director Lawrence Summers would be on a three-day visit to China starting from Sunday and meet Chinese Vice-Premier Wang Qishan and State Councilor Dai Bingguo to “discuss a wide range bilateral and international issues”.

According to the China Daily, the duo would also meet a cluster of senior Chinese officials from the military, banking and economic sectors, as well as from Party organs with an intention of ironing out tensions on issues ranging from currency policy to military ties.

The US had sent Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg and the US National Security Council’s senior director of Asian affairs, Jeff Bader, to China in March this year, in an attempt to improve ties. Bader is also believed to be part of the current US delegation.

Tensions developed between these two countries since the beginning of the year over the US arms sale to Taiwan in January, differences about China’s currency policy, recent comments from the US about South China Sea issues and the US involvement in naval exercises in the Yellow Sea.

Both the countries also differed over the Iran nuclear issue and the Korean Peninsula situation.

Experts believe economic and military issues will be the focus of the latest visit, the paper reports.

According to Shi Yinhong, a professor at Renmin University of China, the visit is a positive step that can ease the tension between the two countries.

“Although it is difficult to see a full recovery of Sino-US relations any time soon, this dialogue will benefit both countries,” he added. (ANI)