- China firm on safeguarding its legitimate interests
- China doesn’t want ‘trade war’ but not afraid of it either
ISLAMABAD – Amid escalating trade sanctions, China has said it is ready to engage the United States of America but at the same time, it stands ready to take the fight to the end.
China’s Deputy Chief of Mission Mr Zhao Lijian told media at an Iftar dinner hosted at the Chinese Embassy that China wanted to resolve the escalating trade issues with the US through dialogue but it will fight to the end making no compromises on its legitimate interests.
“If the US is willing to negotiate, the door of negotiations will open wide. If US resorts to maximum pressure, China will fight to the end. The recent announcement on countermeasures is proof that China is fully prepared,” said Mr Zhao who is loved and followed by thousands of Pakistani youth on the social media site, Twitter.
Zhao Lijian says China takes a firm stance on safeguarding its legitimate interests and as differences emerge in any negotiations, twists and turns are inevitable, but the two sides should respect each other, treat each other as equals and strive for a mutually-beneficial deal.
“It is obvious that some promises are broken, not by China but by those brandishing the baton of tariffs against China. China does not want a ‘trade war’ but it is not afraid of one and would fight one if necessary. Chinese Foreign Minister has said that China will not accept it if US builds trade negotiations on an unfair basis. Any unfair deal will not be reached,” remarked the young Chinese diplomat.
Secondly, he said, China has always believed in responsibility and cooperation as a way to resolve differences in negotiations.
“Raising tariffs and taking unilateral measures only harms the interests of the people and businesses of the two countries. A sound and stable economic partnership between the US and China is important for not only the two countries but also the world economy. Therefore, what a responsible big country should do is to stop thinking about ‘America First’ at the expense of others,” he added.
Zhao Lijian said that China will continue working with the US to ensure the steady and sound development of their economic partnership.
Talking about protectionist approach adopted by US, The Chinese diplomat said this policy is the common enemy of the world.
“The trade friction between China and the US is a question of openness and connectivity versus exclusion and protectionism. China has followed the ideals of the former. At last month’s second Belt and Road Forum for international cooperation, China announced five key measures that will not pose a challenge or a threat but create more opportunities for the world”.
He said the real troublemakers in the global economy are those who rely on their superior power and frequently resort to the threat of raising tariffs, and who trigger “trade wars” at will, even against their allies, without hesitation.
“Secretary Pompeo said Huawei is deeply tied to Communist Party of China (CPC), which puts US information at risk. There’s no evidence for that (claim). My recent tweets on Huawei was very popular. It received 36000 likes and 16000 retweets. Most of them are from you, from Pakistan,” he added.
Quoting New York Times, Zhao Lijian said the US has started a technological Cold War with China and the cases of PRISM program & Alstom vividly tell that even similar ideologies do not prevent the US from taking unjustifiable measures against its allies.
“Secretary Pompeo who has been trying to mislead the public by willful lies, is now attempting to incite an ideological conflict. This is totally illogical. Ideological differences do not necessarily obstruct economic, trade, industrial, technological cooperation,” he asserted.
The Chinese diplomat said that the US government, either Democrats or Republicans, has been all along working with CPC-led Chinese government in advancing, expanding & deepening mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields, which has brought tangible benefits to business sector and consumers.
“When US used administrative means directly to crack down on commercial competitors like Huawei, the idea of openness and free trade, which US has always admired, has become a big joke. It turns out that these principles will only be used when they are beneficial to US,” he added.
Zhao Lijian said the reason why the consultations failed is obvious, the responsibility is totally on the US side. He said China has a history of 5000 years which is always with tribulations and glory and there is no smooth way for China to go through the process from standing up on our own feet in 1949, to getting rich now and to getting stronger in the days to come.
“With the support of 1.4 billion people, strong advantage of political system & CPC leadership, we are coolheaded and somber minded enough to deal with US. We have enough determination and responsibility. We have enough confidence and capability to deal with the challenges. For China, this storm is nothing, more like a storm in the teacup. Time, historical trend & justice are all on the Chinese side”.
Zhao also quoted a Chinese saying which goes, “A just cause enjoys abundant support while an unjust one finds little support.” He said the self-claimed supremacy practice of the US side will gain no acknowledgement or support in the international community.
“Chinese efforts not only aim to protect its own legitimate & lawful interests, but also to safeguard norms governing international relations & free trade regime. China gained extensive acknowledgement & support from the international community,” he added.
He said that since 2008, the United States unilaterally initiated the trade friction with China, attempting to force China to make significant compromises or concessions. He said this is only to serve two purposes: Domestic politics namely the next US election; and number two is to contain China’s economic development.
“There are concerns over an escalated trade war harming the world economy as well as claims that China is ‘backtracking’ and ‘breaking promises’. US attempted to achieve unreasonable demands through maximum pressure. This wouldn’t work from very beginning,” he said.
Zhao Lijian said when US threats didn’t work and led to widespread doubts and market fluctuations at home and abroad, the US resorted to muddying the waters and shifting the blame.
So what is really happening with China-US trade talks and where are they heading, he argued.
“There has been no change of position as far as China is concerned. China addresses differences through dialogue and consultation, because this is in the interests of not only China and the US but also the international community. In the face of the US threats to raise tariffs, China still sent a high-level delegation to the US for talks as agreed, out of consideration for the bigger picture and showing sincerity and goodwill,” he concluded.
Visit by Vice President Wang Qishan
Referring to the recent visit by Vice President Wang Qishan, Zhai Lijian said the vice president visit was a very successful one and apart from holding senior level meetings, a strong message to international community was sent to reiterate that China, Pakistan relationship is an exceptional one. He said both the countries during talks have agreed to work on Special Economic Zones (SEZs), agriculture, social sector, etc.
He said Pakistan and China signed five Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) including Chinese grants of one billion RMB for social sector, 40 million RMB for disaster relief, Framework Agreement in Agriculture, Agreement on MFD (Mouth Foot Disease) & MOU between CMEC, Balochistan Government and Lasbella University.
Detailing CMEC, Zhao Lijian said that an animal husbandry research center in Uthal, Balochistan over 2000 acres. He said that an agriculture plantation model farm covering 1200 acres would also be established.
During the visit, Zhao Lijian said that four projects were inaugurated, including 660 KV HVDC Transmission Project from Matiari to Lahore; Rashakai Special Economic Zone Project; Huawei Technical Support Centre and Confucius Institute at University of Punjab involving Mobile Network of 5G, big data, smart city, internet of things, cloud computing. He said 600 engineers would be engaged.
