Six U.S. lawmakers, including Schumer, visit Shanghai…習 Interview is not confirmed
Chinese state media criticizes both the U.S. and the Philippines…
About 40 Japanese lawmakers visit Taiwan to celebrate Taiwan’s National Day.
The U.S. Congressional delegation led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a hardliner against China from the ruling Democratic Party, arrived in Shanghai, China’s economic capital, on the 7th. This is the first visit to China by the U.S. Congressional delegation in four years since 2019. As the possibility of U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping holding a bilateral meeting at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit to be held in California next month increases, even U.S. Congress leaders visit China to discuss the management of the conflict between the two countries. It appears to have spiraled.
However, the differences between the two sides still remained. Representative Schumer met with Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining on the 8th and pressed, “American companies should also be able to compete freely in China.” It directly raised concerns about China’s regulation of the U.S. semiconductor company Micron and the implementation of the Anti-Espionage Act, which enabled severe suppression of foreigners who criticize China.
Then, China’s official Xinhua News Agency also criticized on the same day, saying, “The United States’ Indo-Pacific strategy is a strategy that promotes division in the region and destroys peace.” Representative Schumer and others hope to meet President Xi during this visit to China, but it is not yet known whether this will happen.
According to Reuters, Representative Schumer met with Secretary Chen and said, “Many American voters feel that China does not treat American companies fairly. “American companies also need reciprocity so that they can compete freely in China,” he said. However, he emphasized, “We are ready to compete, but we do not seek conflict.”
Secretary Cheon also responded, “If the relationship between the two countries is healthy and stable, it will benefit the whole world.” He said, “There are 5,640 American companies in Shanghai alone. “I am glad to have the opportunity to discuss promoting trade between our two countries,” he added.
Representative Schumer is a representative public hardliner in the U.S. Congress. The U.S. Joe Biden administration led legislation such as the Semiconductor Act and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which were promoted to keep China in check. He visited Shanghai with senators Jon Ossoff and Maggie Haessun of the same party as well as senators Mike Crapo, Bill Cassidy, and John Kennedy from the opposition Republican Party.
Since June of this year, the United States has sent high-ranking administration officials, including Secretary of State Tony Blinken, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, climate change special envoy John Kelly, and Commerce Secretary Gina Lermondo, to China one after another. In addition, even Representative Schumer, a powerful figure in Congress, led bipartisan lawmakers to visit China and expressed his will to manage the conflict between the two countries. After completing their visit to China, the U.S. Congressional delegation decided to visit Korea and Japan.
China acknowledged the need for conflict management, but also revealed its will to keep the United States in check. Xinhua News Agency criticized the US Indo-Pacific strategy on the 8th and said, “The US is forcing regional countries to choose between the US and China. “The Asia-Pacific should serve the common interests of the region, not the hegemony of a specific country (the United States),” he argued.
The Global Times, a state-run English-language newspaper, also took issue with the fact that the Philippines has been conducting joint military exercises with the United States and Japan since the 2nd in the South China Sea, a disputed territory with China. The media warned, “If the Philippines and other countries outside the region send their navy to the South China Sea, China will also send the People’s Liberation Army.”
China is also paying close attention to the visit of about 40 lawmakers from Japan’s bipartisan group of lawmakers, the Japanese National Assembly, to Taiwan on the 7th to 10th. Keiji Furuya, a member of the visiting delegation and member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, held a press conference in Tokyo just before visiting Taiwan and said, “This is an expression of our intention to support Taiwan with ‘All Japan.’”
It is reported that Japanese lawmakers will meet with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on the 10th, Taiwan’s National Foundation Day, to discuss ways to cooperate between the two countries. We cannot rule out the possibility that remarks that could provoke China will be made at this event.
Beijing =
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.