Chinese Foreign Ministry: "China-US Relations Are Not a Zero-Sum Game"
"International Community Expects Stable Relations"
[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Kim Hyunjung] In response to U.S. President Joe Biden's State of the Union address, in which he stated that the U.S. would take action if China's sovereignty is threatened, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs replied that "China will firmly safeguard its sovereignty, security, and development interests."
Mao Ning, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was asked about the China-related content in President Biden's State of the Union address during a regular briefing on the 8th. He responded, "We will handle China-U.S. relations based on the three principles proposed by President Xi Jinping: mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and cooperation for common prosperity, while firmly safeguarding China's sovereignty, security, and development interests."
Spokesperson Mao emphasized, "China has always believed that China-U.S. relations are not a zero-sum game where 'if you lose, I win, and if you prosper, I decline.' China does not avoid or fear competition, but we oppose defining the entire China-U.S. relationship by competition." He continued, "It is not the behavior of a responsible major power to insult and smear another country under the banner of competition, restrict other countries' legitimate development rights, and even risk damaging global industrial and supply chains."
He also stressed the need for China and the U.S. to pursue common prosperity in line with the expectations of the international community. Mao explained, "Each other's success between China and the U.S. is an opportunity, not a challenge, and the vast Earth can fully accommodate the development and common prosperity of both China and the U.S. A sound and stable China-U.S. relationship aligns with the fundamental interests of the peoples of both countries and is also the general expectation of the international community." He added, "The U.S. must establish an objective and rational understanding of China, implement a positive and pragmatic China policy, and work with China to return China-U.S. relations to a track of sound and stable development."
Meanwhile, earlier on the 7th (local time), President Biden, in his joint session of Congress State of the Union address, stated, "We commit to cooperating with China in areas where it advances U.S. interests and benefits the world," but also emphasized, "As I made clear last week, if China threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country, and we already have." Although he did not mention it directly, this was interpreted as referring to the Chinese reconnaissance balloon. Previously, the U.S. Department of Defense detected a Chinese reconnaissance balloon entering U.S. airspace on the 28th of last month and shot it down on the 4th. The U.S. has claimed that this reconnaissance balloon incident was a clear violation of sovereignty.
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