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QUESTION: So concerning the issue of the Chinese-owned ByteDance being forced to divest from TikTok, can you share any communications or strategies that the U.S. has been in contact with the Chinese regime, especially in light of this divestiture?

MR PATEL: I don’t have any updates to offer on that.

QUESTION: Okay, thank you.

MR PATEL: Go ahead.

QUESTION: Yesterday, Chinese foreign ministry said they welcome Secretary Blinken’s visit to China. I wonder if you can confirm his visit to China next week.

MR PATEL: I don’t have any dates or specific travel to preview. Obviously, when President Biden spoke to President Xi a number of weeks ago, they spoke about continued high-level engagement and diplomacy between both sides. You saw Secretary Yellen conduct her trip. And as we said previously, we expect Secretary Blinken to visit again very soon.

QUESTION: And as you mentioned, there was a summit and a few high-level exchange between U.S. and China. Do you feel there is more – the groundwork is more solid than he visited China last time?

MR PATEL: Well, it’s important to remember that what we are talking about is follow-on visits, diplomacy, actions from the historic summit in San Francisco, or Woodside, rather, in which you saw a number of steps be taken in coordination between our two countries, specifically around mil-mil communication as well as steps being taken to address the fentanyl crisis. So I have no doubt that these are the kinds of things that we are going to continue to press and raise directly with the PRC in the event of any potential forthcoming travel.

QUESTION: And lastly, last week during his call with Wang Yi, was it mainly on Middle East? Did they talk other subjects?

MR PATEL: I don’t have any other specifics to read out about the call. When it happened, and as Matt spoke about, the primary purpose was to raise with the PRC on any influence it may have with the Iranian regime to not take further actions that we would be viewing as destabilizing or malign.

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Source: U.S. Department of State

Speaker: Vedant Patel, Principal Deputy Spokesperson

Format: Press Briefing

Link to Original Source