NUSA DUA: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit China early next year in a sign of easing tensions following talks between the two countries’ presidents, US officials said.

The White House, in a statement after talks between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping, said Blinken would travel to China “to follow up on their discussions”.

A senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the two countries were working “to schedule a visit tentatively planned for early next year”.

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Blinken’s visit would be the first by a US secretary of state since Mike Pompeo, who served under then-president Donald Trump, paid a brief visit in 2018.

Pompeo and Trump later became known for fierce denunciations of China, including over the Covid-19 pandemic.

Under Biden, climate envoy John Kerry is the only senior official to have visited, in part due to strict entry restrictions related to Covid.