China has warned that “conflict and confrontation” with the United States is inevitable if Washington does not change course.
China's
new Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Tuesday , March 6, who was the most
recent China ambassador to the US, struck a far more aggressive tone in
his first appearance as foreign minister at China’s annual parliamentary
meeting, warning of the “catastrophic consequences” of what he
described as a “reckless gamble” by Washington in how it treats a fellow
superpower.
“If the United States does not hit the brakes,
but continues to speed down the wrong path, no amount of guardrails can
prevent derailing, and there will surely be conflict and confrontation,”
Qin said on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress in Beijing.
At
the highly scripted event, Qin set the tone for China’s foreign policy
for the 2023 and beyond, berating the US for rising bilateral tensions
and defending Beijing’s close partnership with Moscow.
Ties between the US and China, the world’s two largest economies are at their worst in decades, and tensions soared further last month after a suspected Chinese spy balloon floated over North America and was then shot down by US fighter jets.
On Tuesday, Qin accused the US
of overreacting in its response, which he said created “a diplomatic
crisis that could have been avoided.”
The incident, Qin said,
shows “the US perception and views of China are seriously distorted. It
regards China as its primary rival and the biggest geopolitical
challenge.”
“The US claims it seeks to compete with China but
does not seek conflict. But in reality, the so-called ‘competition’ by
the US is all-round containment and suppression, a zero-sum game of life
and death,” he said.
“Containment and suppression will not make America great, and the US will not stop the rejuvenation of China,” Qin said.
Under
leader Xi Jinping, China has become increasingly authoritarian at home
and assertive abroad, taking a more aggressive approach to exert its
influence and counter the West but Washington has pushed back.
Under
the Biden administration, the US has shored up ties with allies and
partners to contain Beijing’s rising influence, including in its
backyard.
It also banned the export of advanced chips to China.
Qin
lashed out at Washington for its Indo-Pacific strategy, accusing it of
forming exclusive blocks to provoke confrontation, advocating for
decoupling and plotting an “Asia-Pacific version of NATO.”
“The
real purpose of the Indo-Pacific strategy is to contain China,” Qin
said. “No Cold War should be repeated in Asia, and no Ukraine-style
crisis should be repeated in Asia.”
On Tuesday Qin said the
Sino-Russian relationship “does not pose a threat to any country in the
world, nor will it be interfered or sowed discord in by any third
party.”
“The more unstable the world becomes, the more
imperative it is for China and Russia to steadily advance their
relations,” he said.
Qin highlighted the issue of Taiwan as the “bedrock of the political foundation of Sino-US relations and the first red line that must not be crossed.”
The Chinese Communist Party claims the
self-governing democracy of Taiwan as part of its territory, despite
having never controlled it, and refuses to rule out the use of force to
“reunify” it with mainland China.
On Tuesday, Qin urged the US
not to “interfere in China’s internal affairs” and questioned
Washington’s different responses to the issues of Ukraine and Taiwan.
“Why
does the US talk up respecting sovereignty and territorial integrity on
the Ukraine issue, but does not respect China’s sovereignty and
territorial integrity on the issue of Taiwan? Why does the US ask China
not to provide weapons to Russia while keeps selling arms to Taiwan?”
Qin said.
