BEIJING (AP) — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday defended his country’s position on the war in Ukraine, saying China will deepen ties with Russia next year.
Wang, speaking by video at a conference in the Chinese capital, also blamed the United States for deteriorating relations between the world’s two largest economies, saying China has “firmly rejected the wrongful US policy on China.”
China has rejected Western pressure on trade, technology, human rights and its claims to a wide swath of the western Pacific, accusing the United States of bullying. His refusal to condemn the invasion of Ukraine and join others in imposing sanctions on Russia has further frayed ties and fueled an emerging split with much of Europe.
Wang said China will “deepen strategic mutual trust and win-win cooperation” with Russia.
“Regarding the Ukraine crisis, we have consistently upheld the fundamental principles of objectivity and impartiality, neither favoring one side or the other, nor adding fuel to the fire, let alone seeking selfish gain from the situation,” he said, according to a report. official text of your comments.
Although China has found common ground with Russia, as both are under Western pressure, its economic future remains tied to American and European markets and technology. Leader Xi Jinping is pushing Chinese industry to become more self-sufficient, but Wang acknowledged that experience has shown “that China and the United States cannot disengage or cut supply chains.”
He said China would strive to restore relations with the US, saying they had collapsed because “the US has stubbornly continued to view China as its main competitor and has engaged in blatant blockade, repression and provocation against China.”
