US, China had ‘serious’ talks despite ‘theatrics’: Spokesperson

Public spat before first high-level talks could be ‘aimed at a domestic audience’, US State Department says.

US diplomats have had “serious discussions” with counterparts from China in Alaska and will not let “theatrics” from the Chinese side distract from laying out our principles and having tough conversations, the US State Department said on Friday. US and Chinese officials traded rebukes before the first high-level, in-person meetings between diplomats from the two big powers on Thursday. “We know that sometimes these diplomatic presentations can be exaggerated, or maybe even aimed at a domestic audience,” State Department spokeswoman Jalina Porter told a news briefing.