WASHINGTON/BEIJING (dpa-AFX) – US Secretary of State Marco Rubio sees China as the biggest geopolitical challenge for his country. At the same time, it is “the most important relationship that we have to maintain,” he told Fox News on board the government plane Air Force One on the way to China. Rubio accompanies US President Donald Trump, who is holding talks with China’s state and party leader Xi Jinping in Beijing today.
China is a “big, powerful country,” said Rubio. He spoke of conflicting interests between the two countries without giving details. He said that “in order to avoid wars and maintain peace and stability in the world,” these interests must be reconciled.
The US has already made it clear to China that any support for Iran would “obviously” harm its relationship with the United States. This is also an aspect that will be discussed in the talks in Beijing.
China is one of Iran’s most important partner countries, which it supports economically. This is not viewed favorably in Washington: The US Treasury Department has recently imposed several sanctions against Chinese companies that, according to the US, are conducting illicit trade with Iran./fsp/DP/jha