Work with China on improving ties, Wang tells Blinken
The nation's top diplomat Wang Yi has urged Washington to "work with China" to improve ties during a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the Foreign Ministry said on Friday.  The discussion on the sidelines of Southeast Asian talks in Jakarta on Thursday was the latest in a series of high-level interactions as the two sides try to ease trade and geopolitical tensions.  In their second meeting in less than a month, Blinken raised concerns about alleged Chinese cybersecurity threats.  Washington "needs to take a rational and pragmatic approach, work with China in the same direction", Wang told Blinken according to a statement on Friday by the Foreign Ministry.  He also urged the United States to stop "interfering" in the nation's affairs.  "Wang outlined China's stern position on the Taiwan question and urged the US to avoid wantonly interfering in China's internal affairs," the ministry said.  He also urged the United States to "stop suppressing China in the economy, trade, science and technology, and lift illegal and unwarranted sanctions against China". Blinken met Wang last month on the first visit to China by a US secretary of state in five years. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen then went to China earlier this month, and climate envoy John Kerry is to visit next week. (AFP)