US secretary of commerce to travel to China next week, to focus on US-China commercial relationship

As the United States and China step up attempts to ease tensions between them, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo will visit Beijing and Shanghai next week.

The visit announced on Tuesday is one among a slew of US officials dispatched to China in recent months.

US, China at loggerheads

The two nations have been at loggerheads over everything, from trade to human rights and Taiwan, reports AFP.

Relations between the world's largest economies have plummeted to some of their worst levels in decades. Topping the long list of disagreements between them are the United States's trade curbs, which Washington says are crucial to safeguarding its national security. China, however, views them as a limitation on its global rise. 

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As per a US Department of Commerce statement, "Secretary Raimondo looks forward to constructive discussions on issues relating to the US-China commercial relationship, challenges faced by US businesses, and areas for potential cooperation."

Confirming the visit, China said that the US Commerce Secretary has been invited by her Chinese counterpart, Wang Wentao.

During her August 27-30 trip, Raimondo will travel to both Beijing and Shanghai, said Washington. Her visit will reportedly build on an agreement between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping. 

Last year, the two leaders had agreed "to deepen communication between the US and the PRC on a range of issues."

Trip agenda

Speaking to reporters during a press briefing on Tuesday, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said that Raimondo will carry the message that the US is not seeking to decouple from China but rather to "de-risk", which means that Washington only seeks to protect its national security.

"Contrary to claims by some voices in China that we are seeking to slow down China's economy or weaken China's economic growth, that's just not the case," he said.

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"A stable Chinese economy is a good thing for the world," remarked Sullivan.

Previously, in June, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken travelled to Beijing. During the trip, he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping. In the aftermath of the visit, he said that progress had been made on a number of key sources of contention.

(With inputs from agencies)

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