US State Secretary Blinken to visit China next month

Washington: US State Secretary Antony Blinken will visit China on February 5-6, US-based Politico reported.

Blinken's agenda is expected to include Russia's invasion of Ukraine, China's nuclear arsenal and US citizens held in China, the report said. The newspaper reported citing Washington-based diplomats familiar with Blinken's travel plans that the US state secretary will meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang in Beijing on February 5-6 .

Blinken's visit to Beijing is a follow-up to US leader Joe Biden's meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Indonesia in November 2022, at which Biden vowed to "maintain open lines of communication" with China.

The trip will also test whether the meeting between the two presidents has paved the way for more productive US-China relations at a time of tensions.

Neither US State Department nor the Chinese government has released details of Blinken's upcoming Beijing visit, according to Politico.