China’s foreign minister recommends that Europeans turn more to China.
(Photo: Bloomberg)
Beijing China hopes that Europeans will gain more independence from the United States. At a press conference on the occasion of the ongoing annual session of the People’s Congress in Beijing on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Qin Gang courted the European Union, which always sees China as a “comprehensive strategic partner”.
“We hope that Europe, which has endured the suffering of the war in Ukraine, will learn from its pain and achieve genuine strategic autonomy and long-term stability,” Qin Gang said. In doing so, he indirectly expressed his desire for the Europeans to distance themselves from the Americans, who accuse China of dominance.
China wants to work with the European side “to adhere to true multilateralism, mutual respect and cooperation for the benefit of both”. By strengthening the China-EU partnership, the world can be injected with more stability, certainty and positive energy.
In view of the increasing tensions in relations, he warned the USA of the danger of a confrontational course. The US government is more focused on suppressing and containing China than on fair or rules-based competition.
If she does not change this wrong course towards China, there will be “conflicts and confrontations”.
China: US perception is distorted
“The United States’ perception and views of China are seriously distorted,” Qin said. “They see China as their main rival and as the greatest geopolitical challenge.” The US government claims that it is establishing guard rails for relations with China and is not seeking conflict.
But in practice, this means that China should not respond with words or actions when slandered or attacked. “It’s just impossible,” he said. “Unless America hits the brakes and continues down the wrong path, no amount of guard rails can prevent a derailment that will lead to conflict and confrontation, and who will suffer the catastrophic consequences?”
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