The top diplomats of the United States and China discussed bilateral relations and exchanges between their leaders ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting, scheduled to take place over two days starting Nov. 18 in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China. They also appear certain to have discussed the schedule and agenda for a summit between their leaders that is expected to take place during the meeting.

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U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and China's Foreign Minister, held a phone call on Nov. 11 to discuss bilateral issues, including a summit expected to take place on the sidelines of the APEC meeting. /Beijing Youth Daily

According to an announcement by China's Foreign Ministry on Nov. 12, Wang Yi, who also serves as Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, spoke by phone with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio the previous day and exchanged views on these matters. During the call, Wang first said, "The steady momentum in China-U.S. relations has not come easily," adding that it was "a rational choice made by the two major powers in consideration of their respective and shared interests."

Wang went on to say, "China's policy toward the United States remains stable and consistent," adding, "We are willing to strengthen communication and cooperation with the United States and properly manage differences and sensitive issues."

He also said the two countries should support each other in successfully hosting this year's APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting and Group of 20 (G20) Summit and achieve tangible results in building a constructive and strategically stable China-U.S. relationship. It seems only natural to assume that the two diplomats subsequently coordinated the agenda and schedule for what would be the third summit between their leaders this year. In this regard, Zhang Weiguo, a political commentator in Beijing, said, "A trilateral summit between China, the United States and Russia in Shenzhen can be considered almost inevitable." He also assessed that there was a strong possibility that the schedule and agenda for the trilateral summit had been discussed.

According to diplomatic sources in Beijing on Nov. 12, the United States and China have sought to ease trade tensions and stabilize relations through two summits this year. However, the two countries remain divided over key issues, including tariffs, rare earth export controls and restrictions on advanced technologies. Moreover, relations are likely to deteriorate further following the emergence of espionage allegations surrounding Alice Huang (Huang Le), who was involved in an extramarital affair with NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang (Huang Renxun).

The sources nevertheless expect President Donald Trump to be unlikely to raise the issue during his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who also serves as general secretary of the CPC Central Committee. This could suggest that, although tensions between the two countries have intensified, the controversy involving the NVIDIA CEO will not push bilateral relations to their worst point.

China's Foreign Ministry did not disclose what Rubio said during the phone call. However, it is presumed that he, like Trump, refrained from making remarks that would put China in an uncomfortable position.

                                                                                                            Hong Soon-do