China’s relations with the United States dominated media questions to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at a press conference on the sidelines of the NPC and CPPCC sessions in Beijing. “No country should fantasize that it can suppress China and maintain good relations with China at the same time,” Wang warned. “Such two-faced acts are not good for the stability of bilateral relations, or for building mutual trust,” he added. On fentanyl abuse in the U.S., Wang said China has been assisting the U.S. “in various ways on humanitarian grounds”. “Washington should not return good with evil, or even impose arbitrary tariffs on Chinese products, as no responsible major country should do that,” he added. He urged the U.S. to take stock of what it has achieved from tariff and trade wars by examining its own trade deficit, manufacturing, inflation and the life of its people. “Cooperation will bring about mutual benefit and win-win, and China will definitely take countermeasures in response to arbitrary pressure,” Wang said. “We hope that the U.S. side will listen to the calls of the two peoples, see clearly the trend of the times, take an objective and rational view of China’s development, and engage proactively with China in practical exchanges,” he said. Minister Wang quoted a popular saying in the West that “there are no permanent friends, only permanent interests”. “We in China believe that friends should be permanent and we should pursue common interests,” he added.
On China-Russia relations, Wang Yi said that China-Russia friendship will not change and its internal driving force will not weaken. A mature, resilient and stable China-Russia relationship is a constant in a turbulent world rather than a variable in geopolitical games.
China is a member of the Global South, which holds the key to bringing stability to the world and making it a better place, China's Foreign Minister said. No matter how the world changes, our heart will always be with the Global South, and our roots will grow deeper in the Global South.
On Ukraine, he said that no one wins in a conflict, but everyone gains in peace. The negotiation table is where the conflict ends and peace starts. Reaching a fair and durable peace deal that is binding and accepted by all parties concerned is a valuable common point, and all parties should jointly strive for this.
Turning to innovation, Wang Yi said that “high fences and small yards” cannot suppress the spirit of innovation, and decoupling and supply chain disruptions will only lead to self-isolation.
On the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, he said that Gaza belongs to the Palestinian people. It is an inseparable part of Palestinian territory. Changing its status by forceful means will not bring about peace, but only more chaos, and without peace in the Middle East, the world will not be stable.
On the Taiwan question, he said that the only reference to the Taiwan region in the UN is “Taiwan, province of China”. Taiwan is never a country, not in the past and never in the future. Respect for all countries’ sovereignty and territorial integrity should mean support for China’s complete reunification. Commitment to the one-China principle should mean opposition to any form of “Taiwan independence”.
On relations with the EU, Minister Wang had this to say: “In the half-century-long China-EU relationship, the most valuable asset is mutual respect, the most powerful impetus is mutual benefit, the greatest unifying consensus is multilateralism and the most accurate characterization is partnership, the China Daily reports.
