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Tuesday, March 7, 2023

March 07, 2023

China's new Foreign Minister, Qin Gang, warned on Tuesday that the United States and China are heading towards a confrontation and conflict that are inevitable unless the US changes course. Qin's comments underline the deepening tensions between the two largest economies globally in the wake of the surveillance balloon incident and Russia's war in Ukraine. 

The statements echoed the sharp remarks of China's leader, Xi Jinping, a day earlier, blaming US efforts to contain China for deteriorating relations and suggesting that Beijing would seek to push back. Qin's news conference, his first since taking office in December, took place in Beijing on the sidelines of China's annual meeting of political delegates, where Xi is expected to complete the most significant government reshuffle in a decade. 

Qin criticized U.S. policies and questioned President Joe Biden's assertion that the US seeks competition with China but not conflict. Qin suggested that conflict may be unavoidable unless Washington stops trying to suppress Beijing.

The Chinese foreign minister, Qin Gang, criticized the United States for shooting down a suspected Chinese spy balloon off the coast of South Carolina, saying it violated international law and caused a diplomatic crisis that could have been avoided. He stated that Taiwan, a self-ruled island, was the first red line in China's relations with the US, and the US bore responsibility for the creation of the Taiwan issue, accusing the US of disrespecting China's sovereignty by providing defensive weapons to the island. 

Qin argued that China and Russia's relations should move steadily forward amid the world's increasing turbulence, adding that the US warning against China's supply of arms to Russia for its war against Ukraine was disrespectful to China's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Qin Gang, China's Foreign Minister, denies accusations made by the United States that China plans to provide Moscow with artillery and ammunition to aid its fight against Ukraine. He stated that China is not the cause of the conflict, nor has it provided weapons to any party in the conflict. Qin called for a peaceful solution to the Ukraine conflict, but Beijing's 12-point peace proposal last month was rejected by Western officials. Qin expressed his disappointment in the situation, saying that it seems as if someone is intentionally pushing the conflict to escalate for geopolitical purposes.