China's top diplomat held his first phone conversation with the new US secretary of state on Friday, days after Donald Trump's return to the White House brought more uncertainty to relations. Since then,

Beijing’s lack of clarity about whether it will lift sanctions previously placed on Marco Rubio — the new U.S. secretary of state and a China hawk — has sparked speculation on Chinese social media about whether Rubio will become the first American diplomat in his position who can’t visit China.

A key focus of Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to Central America this week — his first trip as America’s top diplomat — will be to counter China’s growing influence in the region, the State Department’s top spokesperson said this week,

The Chinese foreign minister spoke by phone with Marco Rubio, the new secretary of state who has been a critic of Beijing.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed concern about Beijing’s coercive behavior against Taiwan and aggression in the South China Sea in his first formal call with Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday,

There’s a new sheriff in town. Trump’s election means a new Secretary of State; the world’s most powerful foreign minister is now a Republican. Out goes Anthony Blinken, Joe Biden’s

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio reaffirmed Washington's commitment to Manila and condemned Beijing for its "dangerous and destabilising" actions in the Sea, in his first phone call with Philippine Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke with new U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday and Beijing said he told the known China hawk that the direction and tone of U.S.-China ties had been set by their leaders and he hoped Rubio would play a constructive role for the good of the people of both countries.

If Trump’s team wants to place tariffs on Chinese-built ships, the Biden administration has made that easier, with then-US trade representative Katherine Tai concluding a recent sector review by saying Beijing “unreasonably” supports its yards to the detriment of America.

On the campaign trail last year, President Donald Trump talked tough about imposing tariffs as high as 60% on Chinese goods and threatened to renew the trade war with China that he launched during his first term.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio's trip to Central America, including Panama, is partially about countering China, a State Department spokesperson told Fox Business, as new President Donald Trump is pushing to "take back" the Panama Canal.