China’s Lianghui: Its Implications of a Shakier Sino-U.S. Relationship
Image courtesy of Yingchih on Unsplash
The Chinese Community Party (CCP) National Advisory Committee and parliament met in March for their annual meetings, also known as the lianghui (“two-sessions”). The meetings themselves are public displays, rather than substantive policy meetings that pose any drastic implications for the future of China. Nevertheless, these two sessions established that President Xi Jinping will not budge in his foreign policy agenda.
Upon delivering a speech on March 6, 2023, Xi said that 2022 was a highly successful year for China in many aspects of foreign policy; for example, the country held the Beijing Winter Olympic and Paralympics and maintained price levels in China despite global inflation running high. With that being said, Xi emphasized that these efforts were not at all aided by the West. In fact, the West made it harder for China in their pursuits: “Western countries led by the United States have implemented all-round containment, and suppression of China, which has brought unprecedented severe challenges to my country’s development.”
Xi is not wrong. The Biden Administration has been taking significant efforts to counter Chinese advancement over the past year, such as restricting the import of computer chips to weaken their progress in the technological arms race, and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken claiming that China was going to supply Russia with weapons and ammunition for their war against Ukraine. Indeed, CIA Director William Burns declared that China was “the biggest geopolitical challenge” against the United States.
These counteractions spearheaded by the United States have been broadened by the visit of Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen to the United States, in which she plans to visit Los Angeles and meet with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. Ing-Wen’s travels mark an extension of her efforts last year to connect with the West. In December of 2022, Ing-wen met with representatives from the U.K., Canada, and the European Union to engage in strategic cooperation within the economic, democratic realms and to strengthen bilateral relations. However, China’s recent reactions to the budding U.S.-Taiwanese relationship, such as China’s response after former speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, showcases that Beijing has not been at all neutral. Indeed, after Pelosi’s visit, China decided to cut off all conversation with the U.S. regarding issues like the environment and fentanyl trafficking, in addition to initiating a string of military drills around Taiwan. Therefore, Ing-wen’s visit to the U.S. demonstrates in what Beijing’s eyes would be a further violation of China’s sovereignty and integrity.
Ing-wen was not the only president to make travel plans. President Xi Jinping also made his own plans to travel. According to Taiwan, Ing-wen’s travel was not marked as an official visit; rather, she was stopping in the U.S. as a “private individual.” Meanwhile, Xi’s visit to Russia in late March was an official visit, in which the Putin-Xi summit took place. The summit’s objectives were to bolster the two powerhouses’ relationship; more specifically, to counter American hegemony. Xi’s visit marked his first travel abroad of his third term, demonstrating the prioritization of this Sino-Russian relationship. The two leaders established that the yuan, as opposed to the ruble, would be used to trade with the Global South so that the U.S. dollar would be squashed. Furthermore, it was stated by Blinken that Beijing would supply Moscow with military aid for the Russia-Ukraine war, however, it is important to note that Xi and Putin’s discussions during the summit did not declare this to be true. With that being said, it is true that Xi gave Putin diplomatic support for the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Unsurprisingly, it seems that 2023 is going to be another year of tensions between the U.S. and China – from the realms of technology, diplomatic ties, and even mysterious air balloons. But in 2023, what will define this changing relationship is the new amount of collaboration between leaders. Visits from Ing-Wen to the U.S. to see McCarthy, as well as Xi’s visits to Moscow to see Putin, are variables that only continue to perpetuate skepticism from both sides. The U.S. and China are clashing and at heads with each other; yet, it is critical that there is still room for collaboration and dialogue amongst global issues like climate change and terrorism. Indeed, there is little gray area regarding these issues – there is still opportunity for a positive-sum game.
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