Wang Yi, Rubio Talk Xi-Trump Summit Prep in Call — SkimNews
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- Wang Yi and Marco Rubio held a phone call on Thursday (Sep 17) in which Wang said the two countries "should prepare well for the next stage of high-level interactions in the spirit of equality, respect and reciprocity"
- The call came a week ahead of an expected visit by Xi Jinping to the US, with a meeting with Donald Trump scheduled for Sep 24, per Trump's earlier statement
- Beijing's official summary fell short of explicitly confirming an upcoming Xi-Trump meeting, saying the two diplomats "held in-depth discussions focused on high-level exchanges between the two countries"
- Wang framed "head-of-state diplomacy" as the anchor of China-US ties, calling on both sides to strengthen communication, advance cooperation, manage differences and respect each other's core interests
- The two diplomats also discussed the Middle East, a day after Wang hosted Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Beijing for talks
- In that meeting, Wang encouraged Iran and the US to "remain rational, exercise restraint," return to the interim peace deal signed in June, and called for reopening the Strait of Hormuz
Why it matters: The gap between Trump's public Sep 24 date and Beijing's non-confirmation suggests both sides are still calibrating optics ahead of a consequential bilateral meeting. Wang's simultaneous push to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and revive the Iran-US June deal positions Beijing as an active broker in the Middle East, not just a party to its own trade-and-tariff standoff with Washington.
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