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US-China tensions

Blinken's Shanghai visit sets friendly tone amid U.S.-China strains

Secretary of state watches basketball, strolls Bund, hails people-to-people ties

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with American tourists as he walks in the Shanghai waterfront area known as The Bund on April 25.   © Reuters

HONG KONG/TOKYO -- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken began his three-day visit to China on a light note by taking in a basketball game, strolling through Shanghai's Yu Garden and along the historic Bund, and holding a friendly meeting with the local Communist Party secretary.

Citing President Xi Jinping, Shanghai Secretary Chen Jining told Blinken on Thursday that "the future" and "the hope" for bilateral relations lie in "subnational" relationships, according to a State Department readout. Calling his guest "Tony," he acknowledged that the China-U.S. "relationship has not always been smooth, there [have] always been twists and turns, but overall, it has progressed with historical development and progressed forward."

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