Biden Expected To Dispatch Key Adviser to China

Joe Biden is poised to send his national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, to China as part of an intensified focus on foreign policy during the final stretch of his presidency.

The White House is expected to confirm the trip later Friday, with Sullivan scheduled to meet his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, next week, according to a source close to the plans, The Associated Press reported.

The visit will be Sullivan’s first to China, though he has engaged with Chinese officials many times throughout Biden’s administration, when he has repeatedly tried to navigate the complex relationship between the two global powers.

The high-stakes meeting could pave the way for another direct encounter between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Last November, the two leaders spent four hours together in Northern California, where they made modest progress on issues such as combating illegal fentanyl and reopening military communication channels. However, significant disagreements remained on several issues, including economic competition and global security.

As Biden’s term reaches its end, both he and Xi seem eager to stabilize a relationship increasingly marked by disputes over export controls, disagreements over the status of Taiwan, and ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Europe.

There are also other unresolved tensions between the two countries.

On Wednesday, China accused Washington of creating the largest nuclear threat in the world, after Biden reportedly approved redirection of U.S. deterrent strategy to focus on China.

Biden approved the updates to the highly classified “Nuclear Employment Guidance” in March, The New York Times reported on Tuesday. The document is updated around every four years, and its most recent revised version is expected to focus on China’s nuclear arsenal expansion for the first time.

Added to this, the Biden administration announced in May that it plans to significantly increase tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, quadrupling them from 25% to 100 percent.

At the time, U.S. Trade Rep. Katherine Tai said in a statement that the decision to increase tariffs was made “to encourage the elimination of the People’s Republic of China’s unfair technology transfer-related policies and practices that continue to burden U.S. commerce and harm American workers and businesses.”

Sullivan’s visit also comes at a crucial political moment in the U.S., with Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, the leading contenders to succeed Biden, both advocating for a tough stance on China. The outcome of this diplomatic effort could shape U.S.-China relations well beyond Biden’s time in office.