Treasury Secretary Yellen will hold economic talks with Chinese counterparts
Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen will hold two days of high-level meetings this week with her Chinese counterpart, Vice Prime Minister He Lifeng, as the United States and China look to build on an effort begun earlier this year to improve communications between the the two largest economies in the world.
The meetings will take place on Thursday and Friday in San Francisco, ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, which starts on Saturday. The meetings will help lay the groundwork for expected summit talks between President Biden and top Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The Treasury Department said the United States hoped Ms. Yellen’s meetings would “further stabilize the bilateral economic relationship” and make progress on key economic issues.
The revival of economic diplomacy between the two countries comes at a fraught time for the global economy, which is struggling with slow manufacturing and wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.
A senior Treasury official said the Biden administration continued to seek a better understanding of China’s economic policies. Ms. Yellen is expected to talk to Mr. He on issues such as debt relief for developing countries and financing international efforts to combat climate change. The discussions also aim to clear up any misunderstandings arising from recent national security actions taken by the Biden administration, such as restrictions on investments Americans can make in Chinese industries.
The talks in San Francisco follow Ms Yellen’s visit to Beijing in July. After that visit, the Treasury Department established financial and economic working groups to promote more regular dialogue between the United States and China.
As Treasury Secretary, Ms. Yellen has sought to help the United States diversify its supply chains so that it relies more on allies and domestic manufacturing and less on China, which has worked similarly over the past decade to become less dependent on imports .
In a speech to the Asia Society last week, Ms. Yellen said the United States would continue to respond to Chinese economic practices while seeking ways to cooperate where possible. But she also made clear that she opposed efforts to sever economic ties with China.
“A complete separation of our economies, or an approach that forces countries, including those in the Indo-Pacific, to take sides, would have significant negative global consequences,” Ms. Yellen said. “We have no interest in such a divided world and its disastrous consequences.”