About 10,000 people rallied Sunday outside the U.S. Embassy in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta to denounce President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
Muslim men hold posters during a rally against President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Similar protests, mostly organized by the Islamist Prosperous Justice Party, or PKS, also were held in many other cities in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country.
The protests were the third and biggest in Indonesia since Trump's decision on Thursday.
In the capital, protesters carried banners reading "U.S. Embassy, Get Out from Al Quds," ''Free Jerusalem and Palestinians" and "We are with the Palestinians." Al-Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem.
Wearing traditional Islamic white robes, the protesters also unfurled Indonesian and Palestinian flags.
Protesters are reflected on the mirror of a truck as they shout slogans during a rally against President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
A written statement from PKS described Trump's decision as "a form of humiliation and provocation against Muslims all over the world."
It said similar and simultaneous protests also were held Sunday in at least 10 provincial capitals and cities across Indonesia.
Earlier in the day, another group, calling itself Indonesia's Volunteers Society, held a similar rally in Jakarta, hundreds of meters (yards) from the embassy.
Protesters are reflected on the window of a truck during a rally against President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has strongly condemned Trump's move, which he described as a violation of U.N. resolutions.
Indonesia has long been a strong supporter of Palestinians and has no diplomatic ties with Israel.
SHANGHAI (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken raised what the U.S. describes as unfair Chinese trade practices during his first full day of meetings in China on Thursday with local government officials in the financial hub of Shanghai.
Blinken met with the city's top official, Communist Party Secretary Chen Jining, and “raised concerns about (Chinese) trade policies and non-market economic practices," the State Department said in a statement.
It said he stressed that the United States seeks healthy economic competition with China and "a level playing field for U.S. workers and firms operating in China.”
“The two sides reaffirmed the importance of ties between the people of the United States and (China), including the expansion of exchanges between students, scholars, and business,” it said.
China's multibillion-dollar trade surplus with the U.S. along with accusations of intellectual property theft and other practices seen as discriminating against U.S. businesses in China have long been a source of friction in relations.
China, for its part, has objected strongly to U.S. accusations of human rights abuses and Washington's support for Taiwan, the self-governing island that Beijing considers its own territory and warns could be annexed by force.
Blinken also spoke with students and business leaders before flying to Beijing for what are expected to be contentious talks with national officials, including Foreign Minister Wang Yi and possibly President Xi Jinping.
Blinken arrived in Shanghai on Wednesday shortly before U.S. President Joe Biden signed a $95 billion foreign aid package that has several elements likely to anger Beijing, including $8 billion to counter China’s growing aggressiveness toward Taiwan and in the South China Sea. It also seeks to force TikTok’s China-based parent company to sell the social media platform.
China has railed against U.S. assistance to Taiwan and immediately condemned the aid as a dangerous provocation. It also strongly opposes efforts to force TikTok’s sale.
Still, the fact that Blinken made the trip — shortly after a conversation between Biden and Xi, a visit to China by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and a call between the U.S. and Chinese defense chiefs — is a sign the two sides are at least willing to discuss their differences.
“I think it’s important to underscore the value — in fact, the necessity — of direct engagement, of speaking to each other, laying out our differences, which are real, seeking to work through them,” Blinken told Chen.
“We have an obligation for our people, indeed an obligation to the world, to manage the relationship between our two countries responsibly,” he said. “That is the obligation we have, and one that we take very seriously.”
Chen agreed with that sentiment and said the recent Biden-Xi call had helped the “stable and healthy development of our two countries’ relationship.”
“Whether we choose cooperation or confrontation affects the well-being of both peoples, both countries, and the future of humanity,” he said.
Chen added that he hoped Blinken was able to get a “deep impression and understanding” of Shanghai, a city of skyscrapers, ports and more than 25 million people that is a magnet for commercially ambitious young people from China and abroad.
Most recently, the U.S. has raised concerns that potential overcapacity in Chinese industries — such as electric vehicles, steel and solar panels — might crowd out U.S. and other foreign manufacturers.
Shortly after arriving, Blinken attended a Chinese basketball playoff game between the local Shanghai Sharks and the Zhejiang Golden Bulls, with the home team losing in the last seconds in a 121-120 nailbiter.
With the U.S. presidential race heating up, it’s unclear what ramifications a victory for either Biden or former President Donald Trump might have for relations. But Trump could deepen a trade war he started during his first term. His tough rhetoric on China and isolationist approach to foreign policy could ramp up uncertainties.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, center, with NYU Shanghai Vice Chancellor Jeffrey Lehman, back right, talks to students at NYU Shanghai, Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken talks to students at NYU Shanghai, Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, second left, U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns, third left, and Scott Walker, left, Consul General at the U.S Consulate General in Shanghai, visit a waterfront area called The Bund, Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, right, talks with U.S. tourists as he walks in a waterfront area called The Bund, Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken talks with U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns, center, with U.S. Consulate General in Shanghai Scott Walker, left, while attending a basketball game between the Shanghai Sharks and the Zhejiang Golden Bulls at the Shanghai Indoor Stadium, Wednesday, April 24, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken talks with U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns, center, with U.S. Consulate General in Shanghai Scott Walker, right, while attending a basketball game between the Shanghai Sharks and the Zhejiang Golden Bulls at the Shanghai Indoor Stadium, Wednesday, April 24, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, second left, and U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns, far right, arrive at the Grand Halls to meet with Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining on Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, shakes hans with Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining as they meet at the Grand Halls, Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, meets with Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining at the Grand Halls, Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining talks with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the Grand Halls, Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken talks with Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining at the Grand Halls, Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, talks with Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining at the Grand Halls, Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, center, watches U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns, left, shake hands with Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining at the Grand Halls, Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Shanghai, China. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
