White House’s Sullivan, China’s Wang to talk ties, Taiwan in Bangkok

WASHINGTON/BEIJING (Reuters) -U.S.-China ties and Taiwan will be topics raised at a meeting between U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Bangkok, building on a pledge by the leaders of the world’s two largest economies to deepen dialogue.

“During the new round of meetings, (Wang) will state China’s position on China-U.S. relations, including the Taiwan issue, and exchange views with the U.S. side on international and regional issues of common interest,” a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson told reporters at a regular press conference.

The officials will meet on Friday and Saturday, a little more than two months after U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping met for about four hours on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in San Francisco.

Biden and Xi agreed to open a presidential hotline, resume military-to-military communications, and work to curb fentanyl production, but remained at odds over Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory over the strong objections of the Taipei government.

“This meeting continues the commitment by both sides at the November 2023 Woodside Summit between President Biden and President Xi to maintain strategic communication and responsibly manage the relationship,” Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, said in a statement.

Sullivan, who reports directly to Biden, met with Thailand’s Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin and Deputy Prime Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-nukara on Friday, according to a statement from the Thai foreign ministry.

Both sides discussed cooperation on security, clean energy, trade, and the crisis in Myanmar during the meeting.

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal, Eric Beech and Dan Whitcomb in Washington, Liz Lee and Joe Cash in Beijing; Editing by Tom Hogue and Jan Harvey)