U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng during a meeting in San Francisco, California, United States, Friday, November 10, 2023. This week’s meeting between senior U.S. and Chinese economic officials means another round of talks. It will join a series of talks aimed at improving fractious relations between the world’s two largest economies.
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The Treasury Department announced Friday that Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng agreed to “enhance communication” and work together on a range of economic, financial stability and regulatory issues.
The two sides “had frank, direct and productive discussions on a wide range of issues, including the U.S.-China bilateral economic relationship and areas of cooperation and disagreement,” the Treasury Department said in a statement.
The two met in San Francisco on November 9th and 10th ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
Yellen plans to visit China next year to continue talks, the statement said, adding that both sides stressed that they do not seek to divide the economy.
“During the meeting, Secretary Yellen emphasized the importance of both countries responsibly managing their bilateral economic relationship, including maintaining strong communication channels,” the Treasury Department said.
The paper said Yellen and He exchanged views on macroeconomic and financial trends at home and abroad, and that Yellen recognized “significant headwinds and risks to the global economy.”
He stressed the need for Russia to end its war with Ukraine and stressed that Chinese companies “must not provide material support to Russia’s defense industry sector.”
The two leaders also discussed the Israel-Hamas war, with Yellen speaking about the need to “prevent the escalation and spread of conflict in the Middle East,” according to the Treasury Department.
The two leaders agreed to work toward common solutions, address differences where possible and avoid misunderstandings that could cause “unintended escalation,” the Treasury said.
They added that they were committed to tackling issues such as climate change and debt, including by significantly increasing quotas at the International Monetary Fund and accelerating efforts to evolve multilateral development banks.
