US expects Blinken will host China’s top diplomat Wang Yi before year-end

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Washington expects US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will host China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi in the US before year-end, whether at next week’s UN General Assembly (UNGA) or after, the State Department said.

“I’ll let the Chinese Government speak to whether Wang Yi will or will not attend UNGA next week. But that said, whether it’s UNGA or whether it is after UNGA sometime before the end of the year, it’s still our expectation that Secretary Blinken will host Foreign Minister Wang Yi here in the US,” it said.

The Wall Street Journal reported last week that China is planning to dispatch Vice President Han Zheng to UNGA, instead of sending Wang Yi on a broader US trip as previously signaled, citing people briefed on the matter.