Jake Sullivan’s China visit lays stress on need for ‘intense diplomacy’ as US election looms
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, one of the main architects of Washington’s China policy over the past four years, finally visited Beijing last week.
The three-day trip included a meeting with President Xi Jinping and marathon 14-hour talks to China’s top diplomat Wang Yi in the pair’s fourth “strategic communication” since May last year.
He also had a rare sit-down with Zhang Youxia, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, something, as Sullivan pointed out, “that has not happened for a US official in eight years”.
“I think the meeting with vice-chairman Zhang was very important. There is no substitute for actually being able to sit across the table,” he said.
Both sides agreed to arrange a call between Xi and Joe Biden in the coming weeks and, addressing a particular concern of Washington’s, set up a video call between military commanders “in the near future”.