BEIJING
\nChina\u00b4s foreign minister said on Tuesday that relations with the United States \u201cstabilised\u201d last year, as the two powers seek to put ties on a surer footing in 2024. Beijing and Washington have butted heads in recent years on flashpoint issues from technology and trade to human rights, as well as tensions over Taiwan and competing claims in the South China Sea.
\nIn a bid to ease some of the worst tensions in decades, President Joe Biden met Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in San Francisco in November for talks that both sides described as a qualified success. And speaking at Beijing\u00b4s opulent Diaoyutai State Guesthouse on Tuesday, China\u00b4s top diplomat Wang Yi admitted relations had \u201cencountered serious difficulties at the beginning of (last) year\u201d.
\nThe veteran diplomat said Beijing \u201cexpressed its solemn position, demanding that the United States change its misunderstanding of China and return to a rational and pragmatic China policy\u201d. \u201cAfter hard work, the two sides have restructured communication and dialogue, and bilateral relations have stopped falling and stabilised,\u201d Wang added. But Wang\u00b4s rosy assessment belied continued key sources of tension between the powers.
\nElections are due this week in the self-ruled island of Taiwan, a key flashpoint between the US and China.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BEIJING China\u00b4s foreign minister said on Tuesday that relations with the United States \u201cstabilised\u201d last year, as the two powers seek to put ties on a surer footing in 2024. Beijing and Washington have butted heads in recent years on flashpoint issues from technology and trade to human rights, as well as tensions over Taiwan […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-380057","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n