China, U.S. top diplomats discuss ‘high-level interactions’ in call, Beijing says

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

U.S. President Donald Trump and the Chinese President. File. | Photo Credit: Reuters

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Thursday (September 17, 2026) ​told U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio ‌in a phone call that the ​two countries “should prepare well for ⁠the next stage of high-level interactions in the spirit of equality, respect and reciprocity,” Mr. Wang’s ‌ministry said.

Head-of-state diplomacy serves as the anchor of China-U.S. ties, Mr. Wang ‌said, adding that the two ‌sides ⁠should strengthen communication, advance cooperation, manage ⁠differences and respect each other’s core interests.

The call came a week ahead of an expected ​visit by Chinese President ‌Xi Jinping to the U.S., with a meeting with President Donald Trump set to take place on September ‌24, Mr. Trump had said.

The official ​Chinese summary of the call fell short of explicitly confirming an ⁠upcoming meeting between Mr. Xi and Mr. Trump, but said Mr. Wang and Mr. Rubio “held in-depth discussions ‌focused on high-level exchanges between the two countries.”

The two top diplomats also discussed the situation in West Asia, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said, a day after Mr. Wang hosted Iranian Foreign ‌Minister Abbas Araqchi in Beijing for talks.

In his ​meeting with Mr. Araqchi on Wednesday (September 16, 2026), Mr. Wang encouraged Iran and the U.S. ⁠to remain rational, exercise restraint, return to the ⁠interim peace deal they signed in June and “engage in substantive consultations,” ‌while calling for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.