Kerry heads for tough US-China talks

US Secretary of State John Kerry yesterday headed for tough talks in Beijing seeking to chart a path ahead in turbulent China-US ties roiled by differences over hacking and maritime tensions.
Senior officials will meet in Beijing tomorrow and on Thursday for the sixth Strategic and Economic Dialogue, billed as the main annual meeting between the world's two largest economies.
Despite the Obama administration's famous "Asia pivot," already fraught relations have strained further since the Washington in May indicted five Chinese military officers for hacking into US businesses.
Although analysts saw the move as a largely symbolic warning to Beijing since the men are unlikely to appear in a US court, China angrily cancelled key cybersecurity talks due this week.
Alarm is also growing in Washington over Beijing's increasingly assertive moves to stake out its claims to swathes of the South China and East China Seas -- pitting it against regional neighbors, many of whom are strong US allies.
China, on track to overtake the US in the coming years as the world's top global economy, has accused the United States of seeking to rein in its growing clout. Some Chinese officials have also sought to dismiss the US as a country in decline.
Kerry and Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew will lead a large US delegation to meet State Councilor Yang Jiechi and Vice Premier Wang Yang, who will head Beijing's team.