Dialogue with Beijing is of great importance for Washington, and therefore should not be disrupted. This was announced on Wednesday, February 15, by First Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman.

“We need to have direct communication, to speak to the PRC when, in our opinion, its actions are contrary to the rules, norms, the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which it allegedly supports,” she stressed during a speech at the seminar. at the Brookings Institution in Washington.

Sherman recalled that China, like the United States, is one of the permanent members of the UN Security Council – in this regard, the interaction of states is inevitable. Moreover, despite all the existing disagreements, the lack of contacts with the PRC could cause serious damage to the national interests of the States.

The day before, John Kirby, strategic communications coordinator at the White House National Security Council, stressed that Washington does not seek conflict with Beijing in the wake of the downed balloon incident. He noted that the United States intends to keep channels of communication with China open.

On the night of February 3, a huge balloon was seen in the sky over the United States. The Pentagon then stated that it was a Chinese, presumably intelligence apparatus, but it did not pose a danger to the population, and all necessary measures to prevent the leakage of valuable information were promptly taken.

The next day, The Associated Press reported that the balloon was shot down by the US military off the US East Coast on the orders of US President Joe Biden. Later, the Pentagon said it examined the equipment on the balloon, establishing that it was used for intelligence gathering.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry, in turn, denied this statement. The agency said in a statement that the purpose of the balloon is “civilian in nature.” The probe, in particular, was used for meteorological research. A serious introduction was made to Washington in connection with the incident. The ministry said the incident damaged relations between the two countries.