West could still return to 'more normal' relations with China: ex-U.S. defence secretary

Former U.S. secretary of defence Leon Panetta says he believes there is still opportunity to mend the West's relationship with China, as relations with the superpower become increasingly adversarial.

Former U.S. secretary of defence Leon Panetta says he believes there is still opportunity to mend the West's relationship with China, as relations with the superpower become increasingly adversarial.

Panetta — who is also a former CIA director and served under the Obama Administartion — told CTV’s Question Period host Vassy Kapelos, in an exclusive Canadian interview airing Sunday, he’d “like to hope” there are areas in which the West and China can find agreement, while still being able to draw hard lines when it comes to condemning China’s actions in other areas.

China has been the public focus of several American officials in recent weeks. The U.S. military downed a Chinese spy balloon off the coast of South Carolina last month and Secretary of State Antony Blinken has publicly warned China will face consequences if it sends lethal aid to Russia.

Meanwhile, FBI Director Christopher Wray pointed to a lab leak in China being the likely origin of COVID-19, and officials have made moves to ban the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok from government devices.

Panetta called both the Democrats and the Republicans "very hawkish on China” and said, “everybody is very concerned about the relationship.”

“It's not unjustified,” he added.

Panetta had met with current Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2012, right before Xi took office. Panetta said he always found Xi to be a “very, very bright” person who “did not operate by talking points,” but noted the Chinese leader has made decisions that have made it difficult to have a “relationship of mutual respect” with the West.