US, China Top Diplomats to Meet on High Tensions on Taiwan

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken walks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi as they meet in Bali in July 2022 Stefani Reynolds POOL/AFP/File
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken walks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi as they meet in Bali in July 2022 Stefani Reynolds POOL/AFP/File
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US, China Top Diplomats to Meet on High Tensions on Taiwan

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken walks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi as they meet in Bali in July 2022 Stefani Reynolds POOL/AFP/File
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken walks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi as they meet in Bali in July 2022 Stefani Reynolds POOL/AFP/File

The top US and Chinese diplomats meet Friday in New York as soaring tensions show signs of easing, but Beijing issued a new warning against support for Taiwan.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi are set to meet on the sidelines of the annual United Nations summit, their first encounter since extensive talks in July in Bali where both sides appeared optimistic for more stability.

One month later, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, infuriating Beijing which staged exercises seen as a trial run for an invasion of the self-governing democracy, AFP said.

President Joe Biden in an interview aired Sunday said he was ready to intervene militarily if China uses force, once again deviating from decades of US ambiguity.

In a sign of smoother ties, Wang said he met in New York with US climate envoy John Kerry despite China's announcement after Pelosi's visit that it was curbing cooperation on the issue, a key priority for Biden.

But in a speech before his talks with Blinken, Wang reiterated anger over US support for Taiwan, which China considers part of its territory.

"The Taiwan question is growing into the biggest risk in China-US relations. Should it be mishandled it is most likely to devastate bilateral ties," he said at the Asia Society think tank.

"Just as the US will not allow Hawaii to be stripped away, China has the right to uphold the unification of the country," he said.

He denounced the US decision to "allow" the Taiwan visit by Pelosi, who is second in line to the presidency after the vice president. The Biden administration, while privately concerned about her trip, noted that Congress is a separate branch of government.

- Arranging a summit -
But Wang was conciliatory toward Biden. The New York talks are expected to lay the groundwork for a first meeting between Biden and President Xi Jinping since they became their two countries' leaders, likely in Bali in November on the sidelines of a summit of the Group of 20 economic powers.

Wang said that both Biden and Xi seek to "make the China-US relationship work" and to "steer clear of conflict and confrontation."

"However, what has happened is that the US seems to have two different sets of musical scores. Their leaders' political will for a stable bilateral relationship has yet to be translated into logical policies," he said.

The US Congress is a stronghold of support for Taiwan, a vibrant democracy and major technological power.

Last week a Senate committee took a first step to providing billions of dollars in weapons directly to Taiwan to deter China, a ramp-up from decades of only selling weapons requested by Taipei.

Tensions have also risen over human rights with the United States accusing the communist state of carrying out genocide against the mostly Muslim Uyghur people.

Biden, like his predecessor Donald Trump, has viewed a rising China as the chief global competitor to the United States and vowed to reorient US foreign policy around the challenge.

Russia's invasion in February of Ukraine quickly diverted the US focus to Europe but also heightened fears that Beijing could make good on years of threats to use force against Taiwan.

Yet US officials have also been heartened that China has shown some distance from Russia, nominally its close ally.

President Vladimir Putin at a meeting last week told Xi that he understood China's "concerns" on Ukraine, while Wang, in a special Security Council session on Thursday, emphasized the need to end the war rather than support for Russia.

In line with the Biden administration's focus on allies, Blinken met jointly Thursday with his counterparts from Japan and South Korea and immediately before his talks with Wang is expected to hold a meeting of the so-called Quad with Australia, India and Japan.



Le Pen Makes New Threat to Withdraw Support for French Government

French far-right leader and member of parliament Marine Le Pen, President of the French far-right National Rally (Rassemblement National - RN) party parliamentary group, talks to journalists as she leaves after a meeting with the French Prime Minister to discuss the 2025 budget bill (PLF) at the Hotel Matignon in Paris, France, November 25, 2024. (Reuters)
French far-right leader and member of parliament Marine Le Pen, President of the French far-right National Rally (Rassemblement National - RN) party parliamentary group, talks to journalists as she leaves after a meeting with the French Prime Minister to discuss the 2025 budget bill (PLF) at the Hotel Matignon in Paris, France, November 25, 2024. (Reuters)
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Le Pen Makes New Threat to Withdraw Support for French Government

French far-right leader and member of parliament Marine Le Pen, President of the French far-right National Rally (Rassemblement National - RN) party parliamentary group, talks to journalists as she leaves after a meeting with the French Prime Minister to discuss the 2025 budget bill (PLF) at the Hotel Matignon in Paris, France, November 25, 2024. (Reuters)
French far-right leader and member of parliament Marine Le Pen, President of the French far-right National Rally (Rassemblement National - RN) party parliamentary group, talks to journalists as she leaves after a meeting with the French Prime Minister to discuss the 2025 budget bill (PLF) at the Hotel Matignon in Paris, France, November 25, 2024. (Reuters)

Far-right leader Marine Le Pen issued a new threat on Monday to withdraw support for France's coalition government in a no-confidence vote, after talks with Prime Minister Michel Barnier failed to satisfy her party's demands for budget concessions.

Le Pen said nothing had changed following the discussions, and that she was not optimistic a compromise on the belt-tightening 2025 budget bill could be reached.

"Nothing appears less certain," she told reporters.

The Senate was set to debate on Monday following its rejection by lawmakers in the National Assembly after revisions by lawmakers in the lower house.

Opposition parties are threatening to topple Barnier's government as it seeks approval for the budget, and his fragile coalition relies on her National Rally (RN) party for its survival.

The government is seeking to squeeze 60 billion euros ($62.85 billion) in savings through tax increases and spending cuts to reduce the deficit to 5% of economic output next year from over 6% this year.

National Rally has said it will support the efforts to oust the government if certain demands are not met. Le Pen said last week that the RN opposes increasing the tax burden on households, entrepreneurs or pensioners, and that so far these demands were not reflected in the budget bill.

LEGAL PROBLEMS

Le Pen's own political future is also under threat, with prosecutors seeking a mandatory five-year ban from politics for her alleged role in an embezzlement scheme. Le Pen denies the allegations.

Some analysts have suggested her legal problems may accelerate her plans to bring down the government,

Barnier's struggles to secure approval for the budget have fueled speculation he will invoke article 49.3 of the constitution, which allows the text to be adopted without a vote. Such a move could trigger a no-confidence motion against the government.

"It is true that we find very little quality in this budget and very little time for the government to try to increase its qualities and reduce its defects," Le Pen said.

Barnier was also due to meet other political leaders on Monday to seek a compromise on the budget bill. A final vote on the overall budget is scheduled for Dec. 12.