US, China top diplomats discuss key issues, show differences

US, China top diplomats discuss key issues, show differences

The top American and Chinese diplomats spoke Saturday in the first major exchange between the countries since President Joe Biden took office and touched on several critical issues that have strained their ties.

China's top diplomat Yang Jiechi and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed in a phone call the situation in Xinjiang, home to the Uighur minority whose treatment is heavily criticized in the West, as well as Hong Kong and Taiwan.

The two statements reaffirmed the different positions of the countries, which have clashed on issues from trade to Beijing's crackdown in Hong Kong to increased U.S. support for self-ruled democratic Taiwan.

Blinken said the U.S. would work with allies to hold China ``accountable for its efforts to threaten stability in the Indo-Pacific, including across the Taiwan Strait.''

He said that the United States will continue to stand up for human rights and democratic values, including in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong, according to the State Department statement.

Yang said that at present, 'the Sino-U.S. relationship is at a crucial juncture'.

'The Chinese government's policy towards the U.S. has always maintained a high degree of stability and continuity,' he was quoted as saying by the state-run