Climate diplomat John Kerry lower the warmth in US-China relations

July 13, 2023: John Kerry, special presidential envoy for climate, is set to visit Beijing for four days, according to information from the U.S. and China.

“During meetings with officials, Secretary Kerry aims to engage with the PRC on managing the environment crisis, including increasing implementation and ambition and enabling a successful COP28,” the U.S. State Department said.

Kerry’s trip will observe the third time a month that a high-level U.S. official holds toured to China for talks.

Although the meetings have not yielded specific action, they mark a resumption of in-person contact that fell off due to the pandemic and geopolitical tensions.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen ended a four-day trip to Beijing on Sunday. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Beijing in late June, months after he was initially intended to travel there in February.

Blinken postponed his initial plans after news of an apparent Chinese spy balloon regarding U.S. airspace. Beijing argues it was a weather balloon that blew off course.

While Blinken’s trip to China led to a general agreement on the need to increase flights between the two countries, the secretary of State said he failed to reinstate military-to-military communication.

“It’s clearly in the interest of both countries to avoid any miscalculations, particularly military,” Blinken said in an interview on Tuesday with MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell, according to a State Department transcript. “So that’s something we’ll continue to look for.”

Blinken added the “lengthy discussions” he and Yellen had hidden where the U.S. and China have “resonant differences,” as well as areas of collaboration. “That’s moving to continue,” he stated.