BEIJING – Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger met Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu in Beijing on Tuesday, his first known visit to the capital city in four years.

Mr Li said the country hopes to work with the United States for a healthy and stable relationship between the two nations and militaries. He added that the US should exercise sound strategic judgment of China, according to a readout of the Defence Ministry.

“If history is of any guide, neither the US nor China can afford the price of treating each other as enemy,” Dr Kissinger was cited as saying. 

The former US official had travelled to Beijing in 2019, when President Xi Jinping welcomed him for a sit-down at the Great Hall of the People in Tiananmen Square. The Chinese leader said at the time that he appreciated Dr Kissinger’s “sincere feelings” and efforts to promote the development of ties with the US. 

Dr Kissinger’s visit comes as Beijing manages diplomatic relations with the Biden administration, and tries to restore confidence among foreign firms deterred by escalating tensions. US climate envoy John Kerry is also in the Chinese capital this week, meeting top officials in a bid to restart environmental cooperation between the world’s two largest economies.

Dr Kissinger – who was a top US diplomat and national security adviser at the White House in the 1970s – has long been viewed as an “old friend” to China. Mr Xie Feng, China’s Ambassador to the US, met Dr Kissinger in May and expressed his best wishes for the former US official’s 100th birthday.

The centenarian is closely watched for his views on Asian geopolitics. His trips to the nation during the Nixon administration were credited with paving the way for the normalisation of US-China relations at the time.

In June, Dr Kissinger sounded a downbeat tone on the state of ties between Washington and Beijing, days before Secretary of State Antony Blinken travelled to China as part of a mission to reset relations. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also visited the Chinese capital earlier in July to help resume dialogue.

Military conflict between China and Taiwan is likely if tensions continue on their current course, Dr Kissinger said in an interview with Bloomberg News editor-in-chief John Micklethwait. BLOOMBERG