Rice visit paves way for summit

Disputes will not cloud Xi-Obama G20 meeting: expert

Experts said that recent diplomatic efforts by China and the U.S. will pave the way for a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his counterpart Barack Obama at the G20 Summit.

U.S. National Security Advisor Susan Rice will visit China from July 24-27. Both sides will exchange views on bilateral ties at the G20 Summit in East China's Hangzhou in September and other major issues of common concern during Rice's visit, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said in a press release on Friday.

"The G20 Summit is Obama's major diplomatic platform for the remainder of his tenure," Ni Feng, a deputy director of the Institute of American Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Sunday.

"Rice's visit will pave the way for the Xi-Obama meeting, and will ensure that a discussion on economic cooperation will not be clouded by political disputes," Ni said.

Ni added that Sino-U.S. ties will remain stable for the rest of Obama's tenure.

While in Beijing, Rice will meet senior Chinese government officials, including State Councilor Yang Jiechi, "to consult on a range of bilateral, regional and global issues," the Xinhua News Agency reported, citing a statement from the White House.

In Shanghai, Rice will meet business executives to discuss conditions for U.S. firms operating in China. While there, she will also interact with ordinary Chinese citizens, the statement said.

China removed its HQ-9 strategic surface-to-air missiles on Yongxing Island in the Xisha Islands on July 10, two days before The Hague ruling, Jane's Defense Weekly reported Thursday, citing satellite images from France-based Airbus Defense and Space.

The missiles, which had been on the island since February 2016 at the very least, is likely to be sent back to China for maintenance, said the report.

Military movements before the ruling, including China's removal of the HQ-9s and the U.S. withdrawal of its aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis from the South China Sea on July 5, were based on an agreement to preserve Sino-U.S. ties and prevent a military confrontation in the South China Sea, Chen Xiangmiao, an assistant researcher at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, told the Global Times.

Rice will be the most senior U.S. official to visit China following the Hague ruling, which is "a time of heightened tensions," Reuters reported on Friday.

"I have been in communication with our Chinese counterparts over the past two weeks…We clearly understand each other's perspective," Rice told Reuters. "We'll urge restraint on all sides," she added.