Top diplomats from US, China hold ‘constructive’ talks on issues dividing them

By MATTHEW LEE
AP Diplomatic Writer

MUNICH (AP) — The State Department says the top U.S. and Chinese diplomats held a “candid and constructive” discussion on issues including Taiwan, Russia’s war against Ukraine and synthetic opioids. The meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi marks the latest and highest-level meeting between the two sides since U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks late last year in California. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller says Blinken emphasized the importance of maintaining peace in the Taiwan Strait as well as expanding on nascent counternarcotics efforts. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs says Wang called on the U.S. to remove sanctions against Chinese companies and individuals.