The United States seeks to work with China on global challenges from climate change to debt distress, but will not compromise on areas like national security, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday.
Her remarks outlining Washington’s approach to US-China ties come ahead of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings this month in San Francisco — where President Joe Biden is expected to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping for the first time since they conferred in Bali last year.
“We know the US-China relationship is among the most consequential in the world,” Yellen told an event in Washington. “We need to get it right.”
She said the United States is working to collaborate on international issues including climate change and debt difficulties in low-income countries.
But Washington will not compromise on protecting its national security interests and advancing human rights, Yellen added.
She stressed that US national security actions would be “narrowly targeted,” citing recent outbound investment restrictions that Washington insisted were not aimed at curbing China’s growth, but at preserving national interests.
Another key aspect to the US approach is maintaining mutually beneficial ties, Yellen said, adding that this means “responding appropriately to China’s unfair economic practices.”
Noting that all eyes are on a potential Biden-Xi meeting, Asia Society Policy Institute vice president Wendy Cutler told reporters after Yellen’s speech that strained US-China ties will not be turned around overnight.
The expectation should be towards “modest steps which over time could help build trust and maybe deliver some outcomes that are mutually beneficial,” Cutler said.
