SYDNEY: There would be no winner from conflict between China and the United States, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi warned on Tuesday, seeking to dampen tension between the two nations that flared after the election of U. S. President Donald Trump.
Relations between China and United States have soured after Trump upset Beijing in December by taking a telephone call from Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen and threatened to impose tariffs on Chinese imports.
China considers Taiwan a wayward province, with no right to formal diplomatic relations with any other country.
But China is committed to peace, Wang said, after meeting Australia’s Foreign Minister Julia Bishop.
\u00ab\u00a0There cannot be conflict between China and the United States, as both sides will lose and both sides cannot afford that,\u00a0\u00bb he told reporters in the Australian capital of Canberra.
While seeking to reduce tension, Wang called on global leaders to reject protectionism, which Trump has backed with his \u00ab\u00a0America First\u00a0\u00bb economic plans.
\u00ab\u00a0It is important to firmly commit to an open world economy,\u00a0\u00bb Wang added. \u00ab\u00a0It is important to steer economic globalisation towards greater inclusiveness, broader shared benefit in a more sustainable way. \u00ab\u00a0
Just days ahead of Trump taking office, Chinese President Xi Jinping was in Switzerland as the keynote speaker at the World Economic Forum in Davos, offering a vigorous defence of globalisation and signalling Beijing’s desire to play a bigger role on the world stage.
Wang said that China does not want to lead or replace anyone, and that as its national strength is still limited it must focus on its own development, according to comments carried on the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s website.
\u00ab\u00a0We must remain clear headed about the various comments demanding China play a ‘leadership role’,\u00a0\u00bb Wang said.
While Trump’s trade policies have spurred concern the United States is entering a period of economic protectionism, China has previously accused Australia of adopting a similar practise by blocking the sale of major assets to Chinese interests.
Bishop urged China to consider joining a pan-Pacific trade pact abandoned last month by Trump, who has said he prefers bilateral deals.
\u00ab\u00a0I want to encourage China to consider the agreement,\u00a0\u00bb Bishop said, referring to the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
As China called on nations to be open to offshore investment, Wang said Beijing would link its \u00ab\u00a0One Belt, One Road\u00a0\u00bb (OBOR) policy with Australia’s plan to develop its remote northern region.
The programme announced by Xi in 2013 envisages investments by China in infrastructure projects, including railways and power grids in central, west and southern Asia, as well as Africa and Europe.
Australia has ambitious plans to develop its Northern Territory, a frontier region with little infrastructure, but efforts have largely stalled for lack of investment.<\/p>\n