US, China top diplomats discuss key issues, show differences

BEIJING (AP) — The top American and Chinese diplomats have held phone talks in the first major exchange between the countries since President Joe Biden took office and touched on several critical issues straining their ties. China’s top diplomat Yang Jiechi and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the situation in Xinjiang, home to the Uighur minority whose treatment is heavily criticized in the West, as well as Hong Kong and Taiwan. The two statements reaffirmed the different positions of the countries, which have clashed on issues from trade to Beijing’s crackdown in Hong Kong to increased U.S. support for self-ruled democratic Taiwan. Blinken says the U.S. will continue to stand up for human rights and democratic values, while Yang urged Washington to correct its approach.