Contact is taking a holiday!

US Secretary of State John Kerry with Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi in Beijing in February, 2014.
Photo: Reuters/Evan Vucci/Pool

United States Secretary of State Mr John Kerry raised the issue of Tibet and His Holiness the Dalai Lama during his meeting with Chinese State councillor and Foreign Policy Chief Yang Jiechi in Beijing, on July 10. 

In response to questions at a press briefing, a senior US State Department official said, “The Secretary and Yang discussed the situation in Xinjiang and the treatment of the Uighur minorities, as well as the situation in Tibet, and China’s policy towards both Tibet and to the Dalai Lama.”

“The Secretary made clear our positions. We certainly recognise Tibet as a part of the Peoples Republic of China, and we reinforced – the Secretary reinforced our view that it is important for China to respect and protect the religious and cultural and the linguistic rights and characteristics of the ethnic minorities, particularly in Tibet and in Xinjiang,” he said.

A senior US administration official commented that Kerry did not “pull any punches” when it came to human rights issues, highlighting Washington’s “perception of a trend in China with an increase in arrests, with an increase of harassments, of individuals who are expressing political views.”

“I would wager that no one on the Chinese side of the table… thought that Secretary Kerry was going easy on human rights,” he said.

Secretary John Kerry and US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew are in Beijing for the annual US-China Strategic Economic Dialogue. Secretary Kerry met  President Xi Jinping and other senior officials of the Chinese government in an attempt to repair the strained US-China relationship which has followed allegations of cyberspying and maritime disputes.

The People’s Daily – the official newspaper of the ruling Chinese communist party – has made limited comment, reporting that “the Chinese side stressed ‘a constructive approach to differences and frictions,’ while reiterating its stance on Taiwan and Tibet.”

Commenting on the talks in general, Kerry followed a similar line. He said, “we seek a relationship that is not defined by strategic rivalry, but by practical co-operation on common challenges and constructive management of differences where our differences diverge.”