China’s foreign minister blasted the US for imposing a “bewildering” level of trade curbs on the Asian nation, as President Joe Biden’s efforts to block Beijing from advanced tech undermine a steadying of ties between the world’s two largest economies.
“The US has been devising various tactics to suppress China and keeps lengthening its unilateral sanctions list, reaching bewildering levels of unfathomable absurdity,” Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at an annual press briefing in Beijing on Thursday.
“If the US is obsessed with suppressing China, it will eventually harm itself,” Wang added, warning Washington against trying to keep his country at the bottom of the value chain.
The top diplomat’s comments come as the Biden administration is pressing allies including the Netherlands, Germany, South Korea and Japan to further tighten restrictions on China’s access to semiconductor technology. The US says its sweeping controls on Beijing’s ability to obtain sophisticated chips are based on national security concerns that such technology could be used to bolster China’s military power.
Sino-American tensions were also a focus for stock investors on Thursday, with a benchmark of onshore Chinese shares erasing early gains during Wang’s briefing. WuXi AppTec Co. was the worst performer on the CSI 300 Index after a US Senate committee on Wednesday advanced a bill that could ban Chinese biotech firms from accessing federal contracts and cut the company off from the market that generates more than half its revenue.
Wang said that while tensions with the US have improved since President Xi Jinping met Biden in California last November, the US had failed to fulfill all the “promises” it made during that summit, without elaborating.
The nuclear-armed superpowers are still at odds over Russia’s war in Ukraine, Beijing’s territorial claims over Taiwan and trade, despite the recent but fragile stabilization. Access to advanced technology has stood out as a major sticking point as China seeks to become a leader in high-end chips to ensure long-term growth for its ailing economy. China’s announcement this week of an approximately 5% growth target for 2024 was met with broad skepticism, underscoring the challenges policymakers face in the months ahead.
Wang stated that blocking China from artificial intelligence could have “historical consequences,” and said Beijing will submit a proposal on strengthening international cooperation in this field to the United Nations General Assembly.
Tensions between China and the US began to ease after the November summit, leading to a resumption of high-level military-to-military ties and the launch of a working group to curb the flow of the drug fentanyl to the US. They also promised to increase people-to-people interactions between the two nations, including a plan proposed by Xi to invite 50,000 young Americans to come to China within the next five years to take part in exchange and study programs.
But last month Beijing called on Washington to lift sanctions and end what it said was harassment of some Chinese nationals traveling to the US, a reminder of the diplomatic challenges that remain.
A member of the 24-seat Politburo, Wang returned to the foreign minister post after Qin Gang was ousted in July without explanation, just seven months into the job. At the same press conference last year, Qin warned that soaring US-China tensions risked blowing past any guardrails in the relationship. That briefing came just weeks after an alleged Chinese spy balloon derailed what was then a nascent rapprochement.
During Wang’s 90-minute briefing, he vowed China would continue to deepen its diplomatic support of Russia as President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine grinds into its third year. He also blasted the European Union’s characterization of China as a competitor and systemic rival as jarring with reality, amid the bloc’s stepped-up scrutiny of trade with China.
Despite that, the foreign minister announced a trial program offering visa-free access for more European countries, including Austria and Hungary, starting from March 14, as China tries to attract more foreign investors and tourists.
Tensions have been rising between Beijing and the European Union, as the bloc made clear it won’t separate trade from security issues. Brussels has opened a probe into Chinese electric-vehicle manufacturers and Beijing launched an anti-dumping investigation into EU liquor products.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, said this week it has found “sufficient evidence” that the imports of new battery electric vehicles from China received subsidies including direct transfer of funds, tax breaks, or public provision of good or services below market prices.
Wang also repeated the Communist Party’s long-stated position that Taiwan is a part of China and “will never be allowed to split from the motherland.” Wang dismissed a poll held on the democratically run island in January, which brought to power a man Beijing has branded a “troublemaker,” as “a local election in China.”
“Whoever in the world connives and supports Taiwan independence will get burned for playing with fire,” he added.
