US, China inch closer after а turbulent year of frayed ties

Signs like resumption of military dialogue encouraging but uncertainties remain high

- Bhagyashree Garekar

WASHINGTON - The four-hour meeting between US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in San Francisco on Nov 15 stirred cautious hopes of a thaw in the United States-China relationship. A month later, some early gains appear to be crystallising.

On Dec 22, the two nations restored military dialogue which was frozen by China in August 2022 to protest against then House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan.

Both nations said it was important to keep lines of communication open, according to readouts of the virtual meeting between US General Charles Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and his Chinese counterpart, General Liu Zhenli, a member of the Central Military Commission and the chief of its  Joint Staff Department.

A week earlier, President Xi added a tone of cordiality via a congratulatory note on the 50th anniversary of the US-China E Business Council (USCBC), a Washington-based non-profit E organisation that represents more Ethan 270 American companies that do business in China.

He promised a better business environment in China in which US companies would have new E opportunities amid worries that the world's second-largest economy is struggling to recover from a serious real estate crisis and foreign investors are leaving the country.

Mr Xi also asked the group and its members to "build more bridges for friendly exchange" and expand cooperation.

At the US end, positive signals came from US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who has emerged as a key interlocutor in the unfolding phase of US-China ties. She said she would make her second visit to China in 2024 as the two nations mark 45 years of diplomatic ties.

Her focus will be on sorting out "difficult areas of concern", she said, providing a preview of her trip's agenda in a speech before the USCBC.