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June 13 (UPI) -- White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan conducted nearly five hours of security talks Monday with China's top diplomat, Yang Jiechi, in Luxembourg, a U.S. official said. The meeting, which was described as "productive," covered a range of security issues facing both countries including Russia's war in Ukraine and North Korea's ballistic missile tests, a senior Biden administration official told The Hill and CNBC.
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"The two shared their assessments of U.S.-China relations, including an exchange of views of how each side sees the dynamic between our two countries," said the official, who described the meeting as "candid, in-depth, substantive and productive."
Sullivan also raised concerns about China's recent veto of a U.S. resolution at the United Nations Security Council to sanction North Korea over recent missile launches.
"Jake made very clear that this is an area where we believe the United States and China should be able to work together," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The two sides "conducted candid, in-depth, and constructive communication on China-U.S. relations, as well as other issues of common concern," according to official Chinese media.
Sullivan and Yang "agreed to follow the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, step up contact and dialogue, reduce misunderstanding and miscalculation, and properly manage differences," the Chinese account said.
During the meeting, Yang said China "attaches high importance" to assurances from President Joe Biden that the United States "does not seek a new Cold War" or support Taiwanese independence, but cautioned bilateral relations have reached a low point because "the U.S. side has been insisting on further containing and suppressing China in an all-round way," according to Beijing.
Monday's encounter in Luxembourg follows a phone call last month between Sullivan and Yang, along with a March 14 meeting in Rome that lasted seven hours and was later described as "intense" after U.S. officials said Russia had asked China for military and economic assistance.
The meeting also comes three days after Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with China's minister of national defense, Gen. Wei Fenghe in Singapore, during which he warned Beijing over its aggressive actions toward Taiwan and reiterated that the United States remains committed to its longstanding "One China" policy.
The White House said Monday's meeting with Yang provided an opportunity for both countries to "responsibly" work together.
"Mr. Sullivan underscored the importance of maintaining open lines of communication to manage competition between our two countries," U.S. officials said.
Sullivan and Yang have agreed to future talks, but no other specifics were provided.
