China’s foreign minister warns ‘reckless’ US of ‘conflict and confrontation’

China's Foreign Minister Qin Gang has warned that “conflict and confrontation” with the United States is inevitable if Washington continues its "reckless" approach to relations with Beijing.

In his first press conference as China’s top diplomat on the sidelines of an annual parliament meeting on Tuesday, Qin delivered a sharp rebuke of US policies and vowed to bolster ties with Russia.

"The United States' perception and views of China are seriously distorted," Qin said, noting that Washington "regards China as its primary rival and the most consequential geopolitical challenge".

Qin, who had been until recently China’s ambassador to the US, adopted a combative tone in his maiden presser as China's foreign minister, warning of the “catastrophic consequences” of what he described as a “reckless gamble” by Washington in how it treats Beijing.

The US says it is setting up guardrails for ties with China and is not seeking conflict, but what this means in practice is that Beijing is not supposed to respond with words or actions when slandered or attacked, he said, calling it "impossible".

"If the United States does not hit the brake, and continues to speed down the wrong path, no amount of guardrails can prevent derailment, which will become conflict and confrontation and who will bear the catastrophic consequences," the new Chinese top diplomat asserted.

He noted that the development of other countries would not undermine that of the US.

"If the United States has the ambition to make itself great again, it should also have a broad mind for the development of other countries," Qin said. "Containment and suppression will not make America great. It will not stop the rejuvenation of China."

He charged the US with overreacting in its response, which he said created “a diplomatic crisis that could have been avoided.”

"The US perception and views of China are seriously distorted. It regards China as its primary rival and the biggest geopolitical challenge.”

Relations between Washington and Beijing deteriorated sharply after formerPresident Donald Trump launched a trade war against China in 2018. 

China hoped for an improvement in relations under the administration of Joe Biden, but the new US government has shown no sign of backing down on its hardline policies toward China.

ME