Reuters reports: "U.S. National Security Adviser Susan Rice will urge Beijing next week to avoid escalation in the South China Sea when she makes the highest-level U.S. visit to China since an international court rejected its sweeping claims to the strategic waterway....Rice - in an interview with Reuters – vowed that the U.S. military would continue to 'sail and fly and operate' in the South China Sea, despite a Chinese warning that such patrols could end 'in disaster.' With less than six months remaining of President Barack Obama's tenure, Rice's broader mission in her July 24-27 trip is aimed at keeping overall ties between the world's two largest economies, which she called 'the most consequential relationship we have,' on track at a time of heightened tensions. 'I'll be there to advance our cooperation,' she said."
The Wall Street Journal reports: "Earlier this month, President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang both delivered forceful instructions on how to reform China's state-owned sector. Their messages directly contradicted one another....Party insiders and China experts say the conflicting messaging and other recent episodes, including thinly veiled criticism of Mr. Li's policies from the Xi camp, show how discord between the top two Chinese leaders is increasingly spilling into the open, a remarkable departure from the unified front China's leaders traditionally seek to present....Officials involved in overseeing the state sector have gathered in recent days to 'study the spirit' of the conflicting July 4 instructions."
The Washington Post reports: "Trump — a frequent critic of Chinese trade policies — was being anointed as the party's candidate in November's presidential election, and used his acceptance speech at the convention in Cleveland to pledge that he would stop China's 'outrageous theft of intellectual property, along with their illegal product dumping, and their devastating currency manipulation.' He also said he would renegotiate trade deals, specifically mentioning China's World Trade Organization accession agreement. His comments are likely to provoke China, which has already lashed out at the Republican Party over its criticisms of Beijing, accusing it of levelling groundless accusations and meddling in China's internal affairs."