MANILA, Aug 6 (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused China of “irresponsible steps” on Saturday by shutting down key communication channels with Washington, and said its actions in Taiwan showed a move to prioritize peace over the use of force.
His comments came as Chinese aircraft and warships trained on Saturday to attack Taiwan, island officials said, part of a series of measures taken by Beijing after a visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi earlier this week. read more
China’s retaliation in suspending cooperation in eight key areas including defense, drugs, international crime and climate change was a move that would punish the world, not just the United States, Blinken told a news conference in Manila.
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“That includes several military-to-military approaches, which are important in preventing miscommunication and preventing crisis,” he said. Read also : Results of the 50th Session of the UN Human Rights Council – United States Department of State.
“Stopping climate cooperation does not punish the United States, it punishes the whole world, especially developing countries. We should not get caught up in global issues because of the differences between our two countries.”
Addressing climate change has been an important area of cooperation between the two world powers and the two largest greenhouse gas emitters. read more
Blinken said the United States has been hearing concerns from allies about what they say are dangerous and disruptive actions by China around Taiwan, but Washington will remain firm in its handling of the situation.
He said he told the Chinese foreign minister, Mr. Wang Yi, at a regional meeting in Cambodia that America is committed to protecting the communication channels so that there will be no congratulations, as expected by the international community.
“So let me be clear, the United States does not believe it is in the interests of Taiwan, the region, or our national security to escalate the situation,” he said.
“We will keep our lines of communication with China open, with the aim of avoiding escalation due to misunderstandings or miscommunication.”
He added: “Maintaining dialogue is even more important when we are in a time of intense conflict… We seek to reduce those conflicts. And we think dialogue is an important part of that.”
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Narration by David Brunnstrom; Additional reporting by Karen Lema; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Kim Coghill
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