China’s economic rise ‘no threat’ to US, says ambassador
- Beijing’s Washington envoy Qin Gang tells US-China Policy Foundation the two countries should seek consensus to get relations back on track
- Chinese goal is to meet people’s aspiration for a better life, not to enter a win-lose competition with any country, he tells virtual event
“In fact, China’s sustained and stable development is not a threat to the United States,” said Qin, who took up his Washington post in July. “It is a major opportunity, and a benefit.”
US’ China strategy has no bottom line, Beijing’s former Washington envoy says
Waters added that Washington was “strengthening alliances both new and old” to “shape the international environment in a way that reflects our values and our interests” – a nod to the Biden administration’s campaign to rally liberal democracies to challenge Beijing in concert.
What is going on in Xinjiang and who are the Uygur people?
The sweeping law, which will have far-reaching effects on global supply chains, signals the growing appetite of the US Congress for a hardline approach to challenging Beijing on its human rights record.
China is accused of subjecting Uygurs and other ethnic minority groups in Xinjiang to mass detention, forced political indoctrination and forced labour, charges that Beijing denies.
Denouncing China’s actions in the region as “genocide” and “crimes against humanity”, the US has led a wave of nations announcing they will not send official delegations to the coming Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games hosted by Beijing.
“Both Beijing and Washington are pursuing policies not in their own long-term interest,” said David Lampton, director of China studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.
Speaking at the event, Lampton said both sides were stoking nationalist sentiments at home that will be “hard to stuff back into the bottle” and could complicate efforts to de-escalate tensions.
Other stumbling blocks in the relationship were the ongoing tariffs, inadequate crisis control mechanisms, and an “egregious” failure to work together on managing the Covid-19 pandemic, he said.
And pointing to US efforts to ramp up student visa processing for Chinese applicants, Waters on Tuesday praised the contribution that Chinese students had made to the “rich intellectual traditions and diversity” of US campuses.