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Wendy Sherman, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State
[Photo by Reuters]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] Wendy Sherman, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, has canceled her planned visit to China during her Asia tour.

On the 14th (local time), the U.S. State Department announced that Deputy Secretary Sherman will visit Japan, South Korea, and Mongolia from the 18th to the 25th. The much-anticipated visit to China was not included in the itinerary.

One day earlier, the Hong Kong South China Morning Post had expected Sherman to visit Tianjin, China, to discuss a summit meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping with Chinese officials.

Sherman’s trip to China was expected to mark a starting point for improving bilateral relations following the Biden administration’s first high-level talks held in Anchorage that ended in extreme conflict, but China took a passive stance.

According to foreign media, the U.S. requested that Sherman meet with her counterpart, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Luo Yucheng. China insisted that she meet with the Vice Foreign Minister responsible for the Americas and policy. With no progress in negotiations, the U.S. abandoned plans for the meeting.

Previously, the U.S. had repeatedly requested talks between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Xu Qiliang, the top military official in China and Vice Chairman of the Communist Party Central Military Commission, but China insisted on a meeting with a lower-ranking defense official than Xu, preventing the talks from taking place.

Regarding this, a major foreign media outlet evaluated that the ongoing conflict between the two countries remains unresolved ahead of the U.S.’s planned warning to American companies about their business in Hong Kong the next day and President Biden’s virtual attendance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) special summit.

At a joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel that day, President Biden responded to a question about the Hong Kong issue by saying, "The situation is deteriorating."

The White House announced that President Biden will meet face-to-face with Southeast Asian leaders for the first time at the APEC summit and emphasize the importance of the Indo-Pacific region. This signals leading an anti-China coalition. Deputy Secretary Sherman will also visit South Korea, Japan, and Mongolia in succession, seeking a similar anti-China alliance.