China Radio International has been broadcasting since 1993. Its mission is to introduce China to the world and present the world to China. Broadcasting in 80 languages, it is one of the world's major international broadcasters. It operates a multi-language website, CRI Online. I tend to think of it as the Chinese equivalent of Voice of America.
I am asked from time to time to do commentaries on U.S.-China relations. Yesterday's topic was the third U.S.-China Track 1.5 Dialogue, held in Beijing on August 25, 2026 (with a high-level meeting the day before). The dialogue gathered approximately 40 representatives from both sides and focused on advocating a consensus on continued engagement into tangible actions.
There were two major problems: The Chinese side was represented by high-ranking Chinese government officials, whereas the U.S. was represented by a miscellaneous group of retired officials, think tank representatives, and scholars. Notably, none are close to or aligned with the Trump administration. This created an extreme asymmetry between the sides, which would be difficult to bridge. The second issue was that while the U.S. side was advocating continued engagement and translating it into unspecified actions, Scott Bessent, Secretary of the Treasury, was imposing secondary tariffs and sanctions on Chinese companies that trade or facilitate trade with Iran—in essence reducing the meeting to a plea to keep the dialogue open, perhaps as a nod to preparing for a post-Trump world 2.5 years away.
Attendees
Chinese Side
- Senior Official: Wang Huning — Top political advisor, member of the Standing Committee (China's highest body).
- Dialogue Host: Liu Haixing — Head of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee.
- Officials from government departments, local governments, think tanks, and universities.
U.S. Side
- Delegation Leader: John L. Thornton — Co-chair of the Asia Society Board of Trustees.
- Kevin Rudd (Asia Society President), Sean Stein (U.S.-China Business Council President), Craig Allen (former U.S. ambassador, former USCBC president), and Christopher Nixon Cox (Nixon Foundation board member).
The issues surrounded a Commitment to the New Bilateral Framework, which was talked about during Xi and Trump's last meeting but has not been materially implemented.
So while both sides agreed to implement the May 2026 consensus to build a "constructive China-U.S. relationship of strategic stability" that emphasized mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and rejecting zero-sum thinking, these were merely words given Bessent’s actions. It was an effort to keep the door open from the Chinese side by showing sincerity through those who attended.
If interested, here are my comments.
https://radio.cgtn.com/podcast/news/1/Chinas-move-to-clarify-liability-for-fully-automated-cars/601134
A Necessary Asymmetrical Failure
Aggregated summary from an independent source. Read the original at AsianNarratives.