The U.S. State Department said that Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with China’s vice president, Han Zheng, on Monday and discussed North Korea’s provocations and other issues.

A statement by the department said that Blinken had a meeting with the Chinese vice president on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York,  where they exchanged views on North Korea’s acts of provocation, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the Taiwan Strait.

The statement said that the talks involved a candid and constructive discussion and the two agreed to maintain open lines of communication.

The high-level talks are regarded as a step toward a possible meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit set for November in San Francisco.