Beijing’s ambassador urges Chinese-Americans to help overcome ‘serious difficulties’ in two countries’ relationship

Ambassador Qin Gang also pledges to help fight anti-Asian hate crimes at a time when racist attacks are rising sharply

Qin tells a reception for leading members of the Chinese-American community that they could help promote better understanding between the two sides

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China’s ambassador to the United States Qin Gang. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 4:01pm, 8 May 2022Updated: 4:43pm, 8 May 2022

The Chinese ambassador to the US has called on Chinese-Americans to help to improve US-China relations, which he said were “going through serious difficulties”.

Speaking at a reception hosted by the Committee of 100, a group of elite Chinese-Americans in business, government, academia and the arts, Qin Gang also pledged support to combat anti-Asian hate.

The comments by Qin came as the US is celebrating Asian-American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May, and as hate crimes targeting Asian-American communities have surged sharply, partly driven by anti-China political rhetoric and misinformation about the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to a recent poll by the non-profit Leading Asian Americans to Unite for Change and The Asian American Foundation, at least 21 per cent of US adults now say Asian-Americans are at least partly responsible for Covid-19, up from 11 per cent in 2021.

Meanwhile 33 per cent believed that “Asian-Americans are more loyal to their country of origin than to the United States” – up from 20 per cent last year.

Qin admitted that bilateral relations between China and the US faced serious difficulties, but said Chinese-Americans could play a role because “the China-US relationship concerns not only the future of the world, but also the welfare of Chinese-Americans”, according to a transcript published by the Chinese embassy on Saturday.

“China is regarded as the most serious competitor and even ‘national security threat No 1’ of the US. With various kinds of misunderstandings, misperceptions and misjudgments going on, the risks of confrontation and conflict are on the rise,” he said.