State Department spokesman Matthew Miller walked back President Joe Biden’s Sunday statement that negotiations are underway to lift sanctions levied in 2018 on Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu.
As the G7 wrapped up Sunday in Japan, Biden tried to reduce tensions between the United States and China by suggesting to reporters that he expected relations to “begin to thaw very shortly.”
When questioned if he would “lift sanctions on China’s defense minister,” Biden responded that he is currently negotiating to lift the sanctions.
“That’s under negotiation right now,” Biden said.
Li, a veteran of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), was a driving force to acquire weapons from Russia, triggering Donald Trump administration sanctions.
According to Reuters, Li tried to purchase “10 Su-35 combat aircraft in 2017 and equipment related to the S-400 surface-to-air missile system from Russia’s main arms exporter, Rosoboronexport.”
Despite Biden’s comment that appeared to appease the Chinese government, the State Department walked back the president’s comment in a Monday press conference.
“Is the State Department considering whether to lift sanctions on the Chinese minister of national defense Li Shangfu?” a reporter asked Miller.
“No, we are not,” he emphatically replied. “No, we are not.”
When pressed if Biden had a differing opinion from the State Department’s, Miller said Biden’s statement was aligned with the department’s position.
“He also made clear that we are not planning to lift any sanctions on him or on China more broadly,” he said:
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.