WH: ‘We Have Been and Will Continue to Keep Open Lines of Communications with China’

(CNSNews.com) – In the wake of the Chinese spy balloon being shot down after flying over the United States for a week, the White House said Monday that it will continue to keep the lines of communication open with China.

When asked to explain what the next steps are now that Secretary of State Antony Blinken has cancelled his trip to China because of the surveillance balloon, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that Blinken’s trip was not cancelled, it was simply postponed.

“So, look, our approach with China has been pretty clear, and we’ve been very, very clear about this, that — and it will be — continue to be calm, resolute, and practical,” Jean-Pierre said.

“That is not going to change on how we’re going to move forward with our relationship with China, with our diplomatic conversations. As we move beyond this, the president has been clear: We have been and will continue to keep open lines of communications with China,” the press secretary said.

“As you mentioned, Blinken and Jake Sullivan and many others have continued those dialogues, especially after last week, and, in fact, he — like I — was mentioned, there was multiple levels of conversation about our — about their surveillance balloon and, again, communicated directly with China after we took our action to bring the balloon down,” she said.
 
“So, again, multiple — multiple channels of communication. That will continue. China’s, we believe, irresponsible action were visible for the American and the world to see. Not only that — at the same time, a second PRC surveillance balloon was seen traversing Latin — Latin America,” Jean-Pierre said.
 
“That’s one thing that you all reported, and it’s up to China to show it is serious about its words of being a responsible country, that it wants to build a mee- — build on the meeting that the president and — the president had with President Xi very recently, and so, it’s up to China to figure out what kind of relationship that they want, and as you know, yes, Secretary Blinken did — did postpone his trip,” she said.

“It was not canceled, and when the time permits, we’ll see that trip back on the books, but again, it doesn’t change our — what we are trying to do and how we’re trying to move with China. It’s up to them,” the press secretary said.

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