Wang Yi warns US not to approach China from ‘position of strength’

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has warned Washington against approaching Beijing from a “position of strength” and insisted the US has no right to intervene in how the Taiwan issue can be resolved. Wang delivered the messages to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken when they met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session on Friday, with both agreeing to continue communicating. Biden says US troops would defend Taiwan from attack by Beijing Tensions over Taiwan and Ukraine featured large in their talks, and Wang also called on the United States to “learn a lesson” from the deterioration in Sino-US ties. “The two sides knew that they were dealing with countries with different systems from the very first day of their contact,” Wang said according to a statement released by the foreign ministry. “This did not prevent the two sides from cooperating based on common interests, nor should it be a reason for confrontation between China and the United States. “It is hoped that the US will correct its perception of China, reflect on and change its China policy that stresses containment, and stop trying to deal with the Chinese from its position of strength.” The “position of strength” was one US direction for dealing with China outlined by Blinken in March last year, when he said the US would work with its allies and stand up for its values when competing with Beijing. Beijing has showed its displeasure with that approach, with China’s top diplomat, Yang Jiechi, criticising the US for talking to China in a “condescending way from a position of strength” during a meeting with US national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Blinken in Alaska in March last year that Wang also attended. Biden at UN urges Russia accountability over Ukraine, slams China Wang and Blinken had an extensive meeting in July on the sidelines of the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting, with both sides agreeing to improve relations. But tensions escalated when Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the US House of Representatives, visited Taiwan in early August. Beijing viewed the trip as an endorsement of the Taiwanese government’s pro-independence agenda and slapped sanctions on Pelosi and stepped up military drills around the island. “The Taiwan issue is China’s internal affair, and the US has no right to intervene in how it is resolved,” Wang said on Friday. Mainland China and Taiwan split in 1949 at the end of a civil war when the Kuomintang was defeated by Communist Party forces and fled to Taipei. Beijing sees the island as part of China and has never ruled out the use of force to take control of it. Most countries, including the US, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state. Washington, however, opposes any attempt to take the island by force. Wang said the Taiwan issue was the core of China’s core interests. “Safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity is our mission, and that is never ambiguous,” he said, accusing the US of attempting to “undermine China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and obstruct China’s great cause of peaceful reunification”. US warships pass through Taiwan Strait for first time since Pelosi visit US actions were sending “very wrong, dangerous signals” on Taiwan, and the more vigorous Taiwanese independence activity became, the less likelihood there was of a peaceful settlement, Wang added. US officials said Blinken had called on China to end provocative actions against Taiwan. State Department spokesman Ned Price said Blinken had affirmed to Wang the US administration’s commitment to “maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait”. US Vice-President Kamala Harris will travel to Japan and South Korea next week and is expected to discuss the situation in the Taiwan Strait with the leaders of the two countries. “Obviously, Japan, the Republic of Korea, you know, have a lot at stake in Taiwan and the region,” a senior US administration official said at a background briefing on Friday. Wang and Blinken also discussed the situation in Ukraine. Blinken “highlighted the implications” if the People’s Republic of China provided support to “Moscow’s invasion of a sovereign state”, Price said. US must alter course in how it deals with China or face conflict: Wang Yi Both sides agreed to continue communication, with the foreign ministry saying the talks were “candid, constructive and important” – diplomatic language meaning that a lot of disagreements were covered. Since becoming US president in January last year, Joe Biden has not met President Xi Jinping in person, although they have spoken by phone five times. Biden has said he and Xi could meet at the G20 meeting in Indonesia in November if they both attend. Additional reporting by Jacob Fromer

Wang Yi warns US not to approach China from ‘position of strength’

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Foreign minister tells Blinken US has no right to intervene in how Taiwan issue is resolved US accused of attempting to ‘obstruct China’s great cause of peaceful reunification’

Foreign minister tells Blinken US has no right to intervene in how Taiwan issue is resolved

US accused of attempting to ‘obstruct China’s great cause of peaceful reunification’