Blinken goes to China

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to China recently to start to “mend fences” between the two countries, whose relationship has been strained due to tensions over the spy balloon, intellectual property issues, and the relationship between China and Taiwan.

In a report airing on NPR, Blinken met with China’s top two foreign policy officials, ahead of a brief interaction with leader Xi Jinping. The meetings are generally perceived as productive and opening a door to further discussions. However, Blinken said “profound differences” remain, and analysts said the long-term effects of the trip are difficult to gauge.

It’s important to remember that our relationship with China has ebbed and flowed over the past 50 years.

It all began in 1972 when President Nixon and Chinese premier Zhou Enlai signed the Shanghai Communique, an agreement which stated each country’s intention for a “normalization” of the relationship and to expand “people-to-people contacts” and trade opportunities.

My friendship and relationship with Congressman Paul Findley allowed me to closely follow the opening of the Chinese market. In 1978 I traveled to China with the first farm group to visit the country since Chairman Mao took control. A few years later, soybean farmers opened a trade office there, and the rest is, as they say, history.

Trade opportunities with China have grown significantly in the past 40 years. Today, USDA data shows China is the #1 market for U.S. soybeans and corn, worth a combined $23 billion in sales.

Many say the world has changed a lot in the last half-century. True. What hasn’t changed is the need to talk with and to China and its leaders face-to-face. We must stop talking about China and its leadership in media, especially in social channels.

It’s naïve to think the Chinese don’t watch or monitor U.S. media. They know full-well what the US is saying about China, its leadership, and, especially now, its focus on reunifying Taiwan with Mainland China. The need for diplomacy is more important than ever.

The Shanghai Communique includes an agreement that any issues between China and Taiwan would be settled without force. Will Beijing stand by the agreement made five decades ago? It remains to be seen. However, Blinken’s meetings with Chinese leadership is a key step in talking with China versus talking about China.

The opening of the Chinese market is just one of many adventures I have been fortunate enough to take. To read more, visit my website and click on the Archway Publishing banner to get your copy of my book Your Food, My Adventure.