US-China Relations Updates

The United States, who says one thing and does another, is extremely enthusiastic about “communicating with China.” Since Blinken cannot come, the US has replaced him with the Defense Secretary and, since they cannot go to China, they have chosen Singapore as the location.

The US, which has personally plunged US-China relations into an ice cellar, is now putting a lot of effort into how to ease relations with China and how to meet with China. Recently, the Singaporean Defense Minister’s remarks happened to create a new platform for the US.

Unable to come to China, the US wants to meet with China in Singapore. After the “stray balloon” incident, the US staged a “canceling the visit to China” show on its own, attempting to show off its power in the international community. However, this did not work and they have completely cut off their own path to visit China. During this time, the US had to put aside its pride and repeatedly released requests to visit China, but China did not respond.

Therefore, since they cannot come to China, the US has looked for another opportunity to meet with China. As a result, the annual “Shangri-La Dialogue” is scheduled to be held in Singapore again this year, with 28 defense ministers, including China and the US, attending. The US has expressed hope that the defense ministers of China and the US can meet separately during this meeting, as they did last year.

However, it should be noted that the situation this year is different from last year. Our newly appointed Defense Minister Li Shangfu is still on the US sanctions list. Meeting with the US while carrying the label of “sanctioned” is unacceptable to China. The US, which imposed sanctions on Li Shangfu Li Shangfu five years ago, now wants to meet him. However, if the US is sincere, the first thing it should do is to lift its unjust sanctions on China.

The choice of location is meaningful, as the US wants to use Singapore as a mediator. In addition, the US’s recent abnormal behavior towards China has been evident.

First, the US, which has always forced China to take sides in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, suddenly changed its tone, not only praising China’s efforts to mediate the conflict but also expressing a willingness to work with China to solve the crisis.

Second, the US Ambassador to China, Burns, also stated that the US has no intention of freezing US-China relations and is ready to talk to China at any time.

Third, Philippine President Marcos, who returned from the US, voluntarily stated that the opening of military bases to the US was not for the Taiwan Strait but to be able to quickly evacuate Filipino citizens if there is a crisis in Taiwan. The Biden administration has also never indicated that the military bases in the Philippines will be used as a “gathering place for attacks on other countries.”

However, China should remain vigilant toward the US’s sudden “goodwill.” After all, after the meeting between the US and China’s defense ministers last year, there were also some signs of improvement in bilateral relations, but the ever-changing US subsequently played a series of tricks such as the “stray ballon,” visiting Taiwan, and passing the Anti-China Act.

A year later, the international situation has undergone significant changes, and the US’s “unilateral hegemony” can no longer stand. If they truly want to talk with China, they should show sincerity first. After all, the initiative to change the direction of US-China relations is no longer in the hands of the US.