U.S., China to discuss N. Korea, cyber security in top-level talks

The United States and China plan to discuss wide-ranging issues, including North Korea, cyber security, climate change and energy security, when their top diplomatic and economic officials meet in Washington later this week, officials said Tuesday.

The 5th U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) opens Wednesday for a two-day run.

The U.S. will be represented by Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of the Treasury Jacob Lew, the Treasury said. Their Chinese counterparts will be State Councilor Yang Jiechi and Vice Premier Wang Yang.

The two sides launched the high-level annual dialogue in 2009. This year's session comes about a month after President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, met in California.

"So these dialogues, these discussions that we're going to have with the Chinese this week are very much following on those important discussions on June 7th and 8th," a senior U.S. government official told reporters on background. "We're going to continue to deepen discussion on the strategic side on issues like North Korea or the Korean Peninsula."

A State Department official also said earlier, "I think it's safe to say that North Korea will be discussed in the S&ED."

Other major agenda items include bilateral trade and global economic issues as well as Syria, Iran and regional security concerns.

The U.S. is expected to raise its human rights concerns in China and alleged cyber theft by the rising power.

In this year's S&ED on their home turf, U.S. officials will likely find themselves on a defensive position as their Chinese counterparts are poised to take issue with reports that U.S. spy agencies bugged civilians and foreign embassies.

Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. Cui Tiankai emphasized cyber security is not a problem for just China but a global issue.

In speaking to Chinese correspondents here, Cui was quoted as saying Washington has failed to prove the widespread accusations of China's hacking of U.S. computer networks.

The revelations by Edward Snowden, a former contractor of the U.S. National Security Agency, about U.S. cyber surveillance and spying against China and other countries demonstrate cyber security is a global problem faced by most countries, Cui said, according to China's official Xinhua news agency.

On Monday, meanwhile, senior American and Chinese officials started four days of bilateral working group meetings in Washington on cyber issues, a prelude to the S&ED.

Many express worries that the cyber security issue may overshadow other key agenda items in the annual S&ED itself.

The Obama administration launched the high-level dialogue with China amid its stated policy of rebalancing toward Asia.

The two sides take turns in hosting the talks in their capitals (Yonhap News).