US, China to hold top-level talks on tensions: reportsUS Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Chinese Politburo member Yang Jiechi shake hands following a meeting in Washington in November 2018. ABOARD USS WASP - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will meet a top Chinese official in Hawaii Wednesday in the powers' first senior-level talks since tensions skyrocketed over the coronavirus pandemic, reports said. Pompeo will hold talks with senior Chinese foreign policy official Yang Jiechi, The South China Morning Post said, quoting an unnamed source. But friction has sharply intensified since then as the Trump administration, with Pompeo leading the charge, seeks to blame China for COVID-19. Yang, a veteran force behind Chinese foreign policy, also held a quiet meeting in August, in New York, to discuss tensions.

Source: Bangkok Post June 15, 2020 21:00 UTC