In a phone conversation with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi demanded that the US end its “old habit of unilateral bullying.”
On Friday, Wang charged that the US was attempting to stifle China’s development. He cautioned the US against trying to test China’s red lines via “salami slicing” tactics and insisted that Washington must pay attention to Beijing’s real worries.
He was talking about the habit of taking a number of modest steps in order to attain a much greater outcome that would be challenging to complete with a single large effort.
Even though their leaders have attempted to resume diplomatic relations in recent weeks, Wang’s comments highlighted the intense tensions that characterize relations between the world’s two largest economies.
At the G20 summit in Bali last month, Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden spoke about a variety of contentious topics, including Taiwan. It was their first face-to-face conversation since 2017.
China views Taiwan as its own territory and thinks that the US is gradually undermining its core values and upending its order of things while being careful to avoid taking any decisive step that may give China a clear justification to retaliate with full force.
Biden expressed disapproval of China’s “coercive and more aggressive activities against Taiwan,” which he claimed threatened regional peace and security as well as the wealth of the world.
It was referred to as the “first red line” in China-US ties by Xi.
According to a statement from the Chinese foreign ministry on Friday, Wang emphasized that the two sides should concentrate on converting the Bali consensus of the two heads of state into workable policies and tangible actions.
The promotion of dialogue at all levels and the resolution of specific issues between the two nations through joint working groups are all necessary, according to Wang. Consultations on the principles governing China-U.S. relations must also be intensified.
Blinken spoke with Wang about the “need to maintain open channels of communication and appropriately manage the US-PRC [People’s Republic of China] relationship,” according to a brief readout from the US State Department.
Concerns about Russia’s assault against Ukraine and the risks it poses to international security and economic stability were expressed by the US side.
Wang emphasized that China has “always supported peace and the goals of the UN Charter.”
The Chinese foreign ministry paraphrased Wang as saying to Blinken, “Standing on the side of the international community to promote peace and negotiations, we will continue to play a constructive role in resolving the problem in our own way.”
