Beijing, Washington hold talks to stabilize relations

During several rounds of high-level talks between China and the United States over the weekend, Beijing asked Washington to faithfully fulfill its pledge to not support "Taiwan independence" and to properly perceive China's development.

Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, held several rounds of meetings with U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in Malta on Saturday and Sunday.

"The two sides conducted candid, substantive and constructive strategic communications centering on stabilizing and improving China-U.S. relations," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

Wang emphasized that the Taiwan question is "the foremost inviolable red line in China-U.S. relations", according to the statement. He called on the U.S. to abide by the three landmark China-U.S. joint communiques and fulfill its commitment to not support "Taiwan independence".

The development of China enjoys a strong, self-driven impetus, and it aligns with the logic of history and "cannot be averted", he said.

During the talks, both sides agreed to hold China-U.S. consultations on Asia-Pacific and maritime affairs and on foreign policy, according to the Foreign Ministry's statement.

The two sides agreed to continue carrying out the important consensus reached between their heads of state at the meeting in Bali, Indonesia, last year and maintain high-level exchanges.