Tony Blinken meets Chinese Wolf Warrior - Wang Li

 US Secretary of State Tony Blinken is in China for discussions with their foreign affairs minister to try and create a more reasonable working environment to avoid a potential skirmish. Judging from the comments out of the meeting there does appear to be an agreement in place for the Chinese minister to visit Washington. The situation will remain the same because the United States is determined to "operate, fly, sail anywhere international law will allow." China is not going to budge on their claim to the entire South China Sea and they are on a regular basis harassing American and allied flight paths and sailing routes with close encounters. If the United States were to totally back off of arming Taiwan and sending American vessels for FONOPS, this would settle a large part of the dispute. However, knowing the central governments propensity to fabricate agreements that suit them, getting the US to relinquish this type of influence would empower the Chinese government to escalate their plans to invade and attack Taiwan. So, now is not the time for America to take a step back from their activity in the Indo Pacific and Russia.  If the meeting with Tony Blinken leads to a decrease in harassment by Chinese Navy and Air Force officials on American vessels, that might be the best that we can hope for from this meeting. If Blinken will meet Xi Jinping  during this two day visit, that will signal China's a bit more serious about this relationship. Regardless, America's and allies FONOPS ( freedom of navigation operations) must continue to show the Chinese side the West is serious and unwavering regarding human rights and territorial integrity   vis-à-vis Taiwan.  Now that China  has reopened their economy after  the COVID  related shutdown and it is stuttering, the Chinese president may be hard pressed to get a fourth term. Therefore, if Xi  faces questions within the CPC about his leadership, he may be inclined to go into Taiwan before 2027 to cement his legacy as Chinese leader.