Joint efforts urged to mend Sino-US ties

CHINA (China Daily/ANN) -- China and the United States should work together to seek a resumption of dialogue, put bilateral ties back on track and rebuild mutual trust in the next phase, and Beijing expects and believes that Washington’s China policy will regain objectivity and rationality sooner or later, State Counselor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attends a meeting with a delegation of board of directors of the US-China Business Council via video link in Beijing, capital of China, Dec 7, 2020.  –Photo Xinhua

Wang made the remark in a videoconference on Monday with board members of the US-China Business Council, which includes executives of some leading US businesses such as General Motors, FedEx, Visa and Qualcomm.
The top priority for both sides is to rule out various disturbances and resistance and to achieve a smooth transition for China-US ties, Wang said when noting the serious difficulties clouding the relations in recent years.
The bilateral relationship is at a critical historical juncture, Wang said, and he mentioned President Xi Jinping’s recent congratulatory message to US President-elect Joe Biden, which highlighted the significance of promoting the healthy and stable growth of ties.
The root problem of the relations’ serious situation is that some people in the US cannot break from an outdated Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice, meaning they view China’s development and China-US relations as part of a zero-sum game, he said.
Such people regard China as a rival or even an enemy, and they attack the system and path chosen by the Chinese people, attempt to contain China in every way, and even agitate for “decoupling” and a “new cold war”, which is a mistake in terms of history, direction and strategy, Wang added.
China has always adhered to peaceful development, he said. It is determined to embark on a path of revitalisation that features win-win cooperation with other countries, and this is why it expects and believes that US policy toward China will shift back to objectivity and rationality sooner or later, he added.
Wang said the door for dialogue is always open. Beijing and Washington should begin to have talks at all levels, with the ability to put any issue on the table, whether it be a strategic, an overall or long-term one, or a need to discuss a specific issue, so as to seek breakthroughs and solutions and build trust, Wang said.
In view of possible bilateral cooperation in the next stage, Wang named three promising areas: the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, economic recovery and climate change.
China is ready to further its support for the fight against the virus in the US within its capabilities, and the two sides can strengthen economic and trade cooperation, restart macroeconomic policy dialogue and coordination, consider resuming negotiations on a bilateral investment treaty, jointly keep the global industrial and supply chains afloat and contribute to the economic recovery of the two countries and the world, Wang said.

(Latest Update December 8, 2020)