China’s Jake Sullivan and Yang Jiechi discuss Russia-Ukraine on Monday

The meeting’s agenda will include “relenting efforts to manage the rivalry between our two nations and… the impact of Russia’s war against Ukraine on global and regional security.” ,” said National Security Council spokeswoman Emily Horne in a written statement. But it is clear that the administration has little hope of any breakthrough in the Sullivan-Yang negotiations.

“This meeting is not intended to negotiate any specific issues or outcomes,” the source said. “This meeting comes at a time when Russia is waging an irrational and brutal war against Ukraine, and when China is allying with Russia to advance its vision of world order.”

That language reflects the administration’s frustration with China’s clearly perceived strategic interests in the Russo-Ukrainian conflict. Beijing does not want to join an international coalition to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the invasion.

Instead, the Chinese government has spent the past three weeks making bland calls for “peaceful resolution of the crisis“At the same time denounce sanctions that could really affect Russia’s war calculus. That stance prompted a bipartisan group of House members recommend an invoice on Monday to prevent China from helping Russia get around sanctions.

While in Rome, Sullivan will also meet with Luigi Mattiolo, a diplomatic adviser to Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, “to continue to coordinate a strong, unified international response to the war chosen by President Putin.” Horne said.

Sullivan and Yang last met in person in October in a six-hour meeting in Switzerland that paved the way for the virtual Biden-Xi combination in November. That October meeting was crucial in re-establishing the nuance of Sullivan and Yang’s relationship after their Thrilling first meeting in Anchorage in March 2021.

“It is important for Chinese officials to hear directly from [Sullivan] his assessment of how we view situations,” the source said. “There are also a number of areas where we have been very focused on making sure we can manage the competition between the US and China, and I think those will be the areas where we will be.” continue the previous conversations we had and follow. about discussions [in November] between two presidents. ”