'Avoid miscommunication...': Yellen after arriving in Beijing on four-day trip

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Thursday landed in Beijing on a four-day visit, hoping to mend the frosty relationship between the two superpower countries. Shortly after the arrival, Yellen posted a series of tweets wherein she hoped that Washington and Beijing are able to 'communicate and avoid miscommunication'. 

"We seek a healthy economic competition that benefits American workers and firms and to collaborate on global challenges," Yellen wrote on Twitter.

"We will take action to protect our national security when needed, and this trip presents an opportunity to communicate and avoid miscommunication or misunderstanding."

Both nations have prioritised safeguarding national security interests above deepening economic ties, leading to the strain in relationship. Although experts are wary that not much will be resolved during Yellen's trip, the optimism shown by the leader at the start of her trip has invited appreciation. 

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Yellen's visit comes after Blinken's short trip 

Yellen's visit to China comes a few weeks after Secretary of State Antony Blinken travelled to Beijing and met President Xi Jinping. After the visit, Washington seemingly toed Beijing's line and said it didn't support Taiwan's independence. 

The relations between the two countries have remained frosty for a long period. Earlier this week, the chip war between the two countries took a new turn after China imposed export controls on two rare elements, essential for the manufacturing of semiconductors. 

Starting August 1, exports of gallium, and germanium, among several other industrial compounds will be subject to restrictions, Beijing announced, in order to “safeguard national security and interests”. 

Washington returned the favour with news reports claiming that the Biden administration was planning to restrict Chinese access to US cloud-computing services.

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According to reports, Yellen will raise the issue of punitive actions against US firms and market access barriers during her dialogue with top Chinese diplomats, On Friday, she is expected to meet Premier Li Qiang and former economy tsar Liu He, a close ally of President Xi Jinping. 

The Biden administration, in recent months, has set about to thaw the icing relations after the US military shot down a Chinese government spy balloon over the United States. With Biden likely to meet Xi at the G20 Summit in New Delhi in September, the groundwork is being laid out by the visit of top leaders, to ensure a smooth channel of communication is developed. 

(With updates from agencies)

 

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