A Chinese-American chatted with words at the high-level Alaska diplomatic meeting
Washington accuses China of "demagoguery" and threatening global stability
American and Chinese diplomats at their first meeting in Alaska, the first in President Biden's term.
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The United States accused China of "demagoguery" and focusing on conducting a "show, instead of substantive discussions," and threatening global stability, at the opening of a meeting with Chinese Foreign Ministry officials, the day before yesterday, in Alaska, the first in the era of US President Joe Biden.
The first high-level talks between the United States and China began under President Biden, the day before yesterday, with each side directing a sharp rebuke to the other's policies, in a rare public scene that highlights the extent of tension between the two parties.
The United States accused China of "showing off", while the official Chinese media blamed American officials for speaking for a long time, and "for lack of hospitality."
The two sides exchanged accusations of violating diplomatic protocol by speaking for a long time in opening speeches, instead of a short two-minute speech previously agreed upon.
Opening the meeting with Chinese Foreign Ministry officials, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken declared that China's actions "threaten the rule-based system that guarantees global stability," while the Chinese Communist Party's highest diplomatic official, Yang Jiechi, vowed to take "firm measures" against "American intervention", calling for "abandoning the cold war mentality."
Speaking to Yang Jiechi and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Blinken said: “We will discuss our deep concerns about China's actions in Xing Yang, as Washington accuses Beijing of committing (genocide) against Uyghur Muslims, as well as in Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as cyber attacks against the United States. And economic coercion against our allies ».
Blinken added: "Each of these actions threatens the existing order based on rules that guarantee global stability, so it is not only about internal issues, and we feel a responsibility to address them," in response to China, which affirms that these matters do not fall within the framework of diplomacy.
Jake Sullivan, US President Joe Biden's national security advisor, who is also involved in discussions with the Chinese, stressed that the United States is not seeking a conflict with Beijing, but is open to fierce competition with it.
He added, "We will always fight for our principles, our people and our friends."
Senior Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi, director of the Bureau of the Communist Party's Foreign Affairs Committee, responded with a Chinese-language speech for 15 minutes, while the American side waited for translation, criticizing what he described as faltering American democracy, mistreatment of minorities, and Washington's foreign and trade policies.
"The United States is using its military might and financial clout to impose long-term tutelage and suppress other countries," Yang said.
He added, "It is misusing the so-called concepts of national security to disrupt normal commercial dealings and incite some countries to attack China."
Throughout Yang's speech, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, and other officials in the delegation were exchanging notes.
In the end, Blinken kept the journalists in the room until he could respond.
Instead of the few minutes that journalists usually keep at the opening of a meeting of this level, their attendance lasted for more than an hour, and the two delegations argued over when media representatives would be notified to leave the room.
On Thursday, the foreign ministers of the United States and China arrived in Alaska to hold the first bilateral meeting since Joe Biden was elected president, during which they would discuss deep, often unresolved disagreements between the two largest powers in the world fighting an unrelenting confrontation.
The period leading up to Thursday's meeting was marked by a wave of moves by Washington, which revealed its hard-line stance and sharp statements from Beijing.
The US State Department said, "We enter these talks, and we are well aware of China's tendency to not fulfill its promises," promising to "condemn Beijing's actions that undermine the rules of the international system and challenge the security, prosperity, values, and alliances of the United States."
On Thursday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry confirmed that "all issues will be brought up on the table," but warned that it is determined to defend its interests.
She added, "China will not bargain over issues related to its sovereignty, security and interests."
The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman called on the United States to work "constructively and sincerely" during the dialogue, acknowledging that the meeting "will not be sufficient to solve all problems."
The meeting came on the heels of US officials' visits to allies Japan and South Korea.
The city of Anchorage, which borders the Pacific with its polar temperature, was chosen as a more neutral territory than Washington and Beijing, for these three long sessions ... but expectations are limited on both sides.
"American Representatives" Agree to Settle the Status of 700,000 "Dreamers" Immigrants
The US House of Representatives, dominated by Democrats, approved yesterday a text paving the way to regularize the situation of about 700,000 "dreamers" immigrants, who arrived in the United States when they were minors, in a bill whose adoption is still uncertain in the Senate.
And the US President, Joe Biden, welcomed this vote, saying that it is "a crucial step to reform our immigration system."
He added in a statement that "many (of these dreamers) have worked tirelessly on the front lines in the fight against the (Covid-19) epidemic, to keep our country resilient, feed it and take care of it, yet they live in fear and uncertainty because of their immigration status."
Biden wrote in a tweet before the vote: "It is time for Congress to pave the way for dreamers to obtain citizenship."
228 members of the House of Representatives, including nine Republicans, approved the text while 197 Republicans voted against it.
The Democrats also have a majority in the Senate, but it is very small, and they are not allowed to adopt this text without the support of 10 Republicans.
But that possibility seems remote today, because many in the Republican Party believe that such measures would encourage the arrival of large numbers of new illegal immigrants.
In 2012, during the era of Democratic President Barack Obama, the United States implemented a program aimed at providing protection from deportation for those "dreamers" who entered the United States illegally, during their childhood, to the United States, where they have lived since then.
But former President Donald Trump canceled the Dhaka program in 2017, inaugurating a period of extreme uncertainty for these young people under the age of 30.
But in June 2020, the Supreme Court dealt a blow to him, by ratifying the resumption of the program.
The Democrats bill paves the way for their naturalization, as well as the naturalization of beneficiaries of the temporary protection status granted to citizens of countries considered dangerous or struck by natural disasters.
"These are our teachers, our craftsmen, our heads of directors and our businessmen ... many of them are on the front lines of fighting the pandemic," said Democratic Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.
At the same time, the House of Representatives passed a text aimed at making it easier for migrant agricultural workers to obtain residence permits, but the text met with wider support, as 247 deputies supported it, and 174 opposed it.
Liz Cheney, who ranks third in the Republican bloc in the House of Representatives, said that these two laws meant "granting amnesty to millions" of illegal immigrants.
She added, "We must focus on strengthening the borders and improving the legal immigration system."
Joe Biden pledged a comprehensive overhaul of the immigration system that would pave the way for the naturalization of about 11 million illegal immigrants.
Washington - AFP
Beijing threatens to take "firm measures" against "Washington's interference," and criticizes what it described as the faltering American democracy.
228 members of the council, including nine Republicans, approved
the text while voting against it
197 Republicans. American and Chinese diplomats at a meeting in Alaska ... it is the first in President Biden's term. À a.b
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