US President Joe Biden argues that Antony Blinken is doing a very good job in relations with China. So is it really so? Could the USA, which lost its superpower muscles, regain its muscular appearance with Blinken?
US Secretary of State Blinken, who is expected to improve the global image of the USA, served in important positions in both the White House, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee during the Obama administration.
Blinken, who worked with Biden for many years and has 32 years of experience in foreign policy, served as Deputy Secretary of State during the Obama administration between 2015 and 2017.
Blinken, who led the administration's diplomacy on issues such as the fight against ISIS, rebalancing relations with Asia, and the global refugee crisis, also served as former President Barack Obama's Deputy National Security Advisor.
Antony John Blinken (born April 16, 1962) is an American government official and diplomat serving since January 26, 2021, as the 71st United States secretary of state. He previously served as deputy national security advisor from 2013 to 2015 and deputy secretary of state from 2015 to 2017 under President Barack Obama. Blinken was born on April 16, 1962, in Yonkers, New York, to Jewish parents, Judith (Frehm) and Donald M. Blinken, who later served as the U.S. ambassador to Hungary. His maternal grandparents were Hungarian Jews.
Blinken, who was Vice President Joe Biden's national security advisor during Obama's first term, also worked with Biden on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee between 2002 and 2008.
Blinken also served on former President Bill Clinton's National Security Council from 1994 to 2001.
Blinken, who served as a foreign policy advisor to Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris during the election campaign, previously served as the director of the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement think tank.
Blinken, who was a reporter for The New Republic magazine and wrote on foreign policy before holding public office, is the author of the book "Ally Versus Ally: America, Europe, and the Siberian Pipeline Crisis."
Blinken, who received his high school education in Paris, studied law at Harvard and Columbia Universities.
He is originally of Jewish origin.
June 2023
The highest-ranking official to visit China during the Biden era
Blinken, who went to Beijing for a two-day official visit, became the highest-ranking official to visit China since US President Joe Biden took office at the beginning of 2021. The US Minister had met with his Chinese counterpart China Gang, China's most senior diplomat, Wang Yi, Director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China (CCP), and President Xi Jinping.
There are many problematic areas between the two countries, from the Taiwan issue to the military tension in the South China Sea, from economic and technological competition to the human rights issue. The visit is important as the last step taken in recent months to restore diplomatic communication, which was interrupted after the crisis caused by the entry of a Chinese high-altitude balloon into US airspace in February.
Blinken: We are not trying to pressure China
After his contacts in Beijing, Blinken made evaluations about his visit at the press conference he held at the US Embassy in Beijing.
Blinken stated that the trade volume between the USA and China, which approached 700 billion dollars last year, reached the highest level in history, that US direct investments to China reached the levels of 2014, and that American companies' desire to do business in China continues.
Stating that China's economic success is also in the interest of the USA when it is fair, Bilinken reminded that Treasury Secretary Jenet Yellen emphasized in her statement to the US Congress that breaking economic ties and ending trade with China would be a "disaster".