Secretary of State Antony Blinken scurried away from a press gaggle Thursday night at the White House after one reporter shouted out a question about his recent trip to China.
Blinken and his wife attended Thursday’s state dinner with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Blinken was recorded walking into the frame, locking arms with his wife, Evan Ryan. While the two stopped and posed for pictures, a reporter can be heard shouting a question about China. The Secretary of State immediately turned away and waved his hand at the reporters, quickly making for the dinner entrance. (RELATED: Russia ‘Confident’ In Ties With China Following Xi-Blinken Visit)
WATCH:
#WATCH | US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives at the White House for the State dinner. pic.twitter.com/Pdq3AhE2RM
— ANI (@ANI) June 22, 2023
Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday in an attempt to repair deteriorating relations between the U.S. and China. The Secretary of State elicited backlash that same day when he told the press the U.S. “does not support” Taiwanese independence. Many criticized Blinken’s statement for supposedly making America look weak against its greatest foreign adversary.
“The Biden administration is acting needy and desperate,” Morgan Otagus, former State Department spokeswoman for the Trump administration told Fox News. “They want to talk more than China does, and China knows it. So they are making us grovel. It’s embarrassing.”
“Weakness invites aggression,” Republican Indiana Rep. Jim Banks tweeted.
“Appeals to universal rationality are wasted efforts. The only thing the CCP respects is power,” tweeted American Foreign Policy Council Senior Fellow Michael Sobolik.
“Blinken flew to Communist China to appease Xi Jinping and state the Biden administration does not support Taiwan’s independence. Why won’t this administration stand up to bullies and stand for freedom?” tweeted Republican Tennessee Rep. Marsha Blackburn.
President Biden called Xi Jinping a “dictator” on Thursday, potentially undermining Blinken’s efforts.
Biden did, however, express some optimism about potential American-Chinese relations.
“I’ve said this for some time — that the hysteria about the relationship with China is collapsing and moving, etc, etc. We had an incident that caused some — some confusion, you might say,” Biden told reporters.
“But Secretary Blinken had a great trip to China. I expect to be meeting with President Xi sometime in the future, in the near term,” Biden added.