Biden’s national security adviser holds two days of talks in Malta with China’s foreign minister

By AAMER MADHANI and JOSH BOAK
Associated Press

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — President Joe Biden’s national security adviser met with China’s foreign minister over the past two days on the Mediterranean island nation of Malta. The White House says the effort was intended to “responsibly maintain the relationship” at a time of strained ties and mutual suspicion between the rival powers. A statement from the White House says Jake Sullivan and Chinese envoy Wang Yi had “candid, substantive and constructive discussions” as the world’s two largest economies try “to maintain open lines of communication.” President Joe Biden recently spoke with Chinese Premier Li Qiang while in India at the Group of 20 summit and told reporters afterward that they had talked about “stability” and “it wasn’t confrontational at all.”