China calls for reset of bilateral relations with Biden administration

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi delivers a speech at the Lanting Forum in Beijing, China February 22, 2021. REUTERS/Shubing Wang

BEIJING — Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi called on the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden to work with Beijing to reopen dialogue between the two countries to restore a bilateral relationship damaged under the presidency of Donald Trump.

Wang, a Chinese state councillor and foreign minister, said the Trump administration’s actions to suppress and contain China inflicted immeasurable harm, and called on Washington to remove tariffs on Chinese goods and abandon what he said was an irrational suppression of the Chinese tech sector.

Wang also urged Washington to respect China’s core interests, stop interfering in Beijing’s internal affairs and stop “conniving” with separatist forces for Taiwan’s independence.

“Over the past few years, the United States basically cut off bilateral dialogue at all levels,” Wang said in prepared remarks translated into English.

“We stand ready to have candid communication with the U.S. side, and engage in dialogues aimed at solving problems.”

Wang pointed to a recent call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Biden as a positive step.

The comments come with the bilateral relationship at its lowest in decades. Washington and Beijing have clashed on multiple fronts including trade, accusations of human rights crimes against the Uighur Muslim minorities in Xinjiang region and Beijing’s territorial claims in the resources-rich South China Sea.

The Biden administration has, however, signalled it will maintain pressure on Beijing. Biden has voiced concern about Beijing’s “coercive and unfair” trade practices and endorsed of a Trump administration determination that China has committed genocide against Muslim minorities in the far western region of Xinjiang.