One-hundred-year-old Henry Kissinger received a warm welcome from top Chinese officials this month, a stark difference to how Beijing treated members of the Biden administration during recent visits.
The former secretary of state and national security adviser was greeted as an “old friend” by Chinese President Xi Jinping, and also met with the country’s top diplomat Wang Yi. Defense Minister Li Shangfu, who refused direct talks with his American counterpart, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, also held talks with Kissinger.
#XiJinping’s words today suggest he thinks #Kissinger has advanced #China’s interests over ours. https://t.co/js5dQiC2Zo
— Gordon G. Chang (@GordonGChang) July 20, 2023
The surprise visit of the 100-year-old former US secretary of state comes as John Kerry, the US climate envoy, is in Beijing to meet Chinese officials to discuss how the two countries can cooperate on confronting the climate crisis. Kerry is the latest in a string of senior US officials who have travelled to China this summer, after the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, completed a long-awaited trip in June.Relations between the two superpowers have been spiralling downwards for months, but there is cautious optimism on both sides that the restarting of official dialogues can build a foundation for improved ties.
Kissinger’s visit, which had not been publicised, is outside the official roster of meetings. It is almost exactly 52 years since his secret visit to Beijing in July 1971, which paved the way for Richard Nixon, the US president at the time, to normalise relations between the US and China. More than half a century on, Kissinger is still seen by many in Beijing as a “friend of China”. In May, state tabloid the Global Times praised Kissinger’s “razor-sharp” mind. (The Guardian)
According to Reuters, the White House expressed "regret" over the fact that a private citizen had better access to top Chinese officials than current members of the administration.
The White House expressed regret that former US diplomat Henry Kissinger received more attention in his latest visit to China than some sitting US officials https://t.co/U0Aily2dfe pic.twitter.com/XSTpyt4t3A
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 21, 2023
"It's unfortunate that a private citizen can meet with the defense minister and have a communication and the United States can't," White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters.
"That is something that we want to solve. This is why we continue to try to get the military lines of communication back open because when they're not open and you have a time like this when tensions are high, miscalculations also, then the risk goes high."
Kirby also said the administration looked forward to "hearing from Secretary Kissinger when he returns, to hear what he heard, what he learned, what he saw."
Three top US officials have traveled to Beijing in recent months, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and climate envoy John Kerry. Headlines about those trips indicate Blinken got the "cold shoulder" and had a "frosty" reception, while Katie reported that Kerry was “all but laughed out of China.”
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