China’s foreign minister says “confrontation and conflict” will occur if the United States does not change | world

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang said on Tuesday that the United States must change its “distorted” attitude towards the Asian region, otherwise there will be “conflict and confrontation.”

He announced at a press conference that “if the United States does not hit the brakes and continues to accelerate down the wrong track, there will be no barrier preventing deviating from the track, which will lead to conflict and confrontation, which will have dire consequences.” For about two hours, during which he answered questions sent in advance.

Relations between the two superpowers have been tense for years over a host of issues, including Taiwan, trade, and most recently the war in Ukraine, but turned sour last month after the United States shot down a blimp off the east coast of the United States. to be Chinese.

Zhang stated, “The US’s perceptions and views of China are seriously skewed. [Os norte-americanos] Considering China as their main competitor and greatest geopolitical challenge.

However, the United States says it puts up barriers to relations and does not seek conflict.

The United States says it seeks competition with China, but not conflict. But in fact, the so-called US “competition” is complete containment and suppression, a zero-sum game of life and death,” the chancellor stated.

Throughout the interview, Chen made a staunch defense of “wolf warrior diplomacy,” an assertive and often abrasive stance espoused by Chinese diplomats since 2020.

“When jackals and wolves block the road and hungry wolves attack us, Chinese diplomats must dance with the wolves and protect and defend our homeland and our country,” the minister said.

Chen also stated that the “invisible hand” was pushing for an escalation of the war in Ukraine “to serve certain geopolitical agendas”, without specifying who he was referring to. The Americans announced, on February 18, 2023, that Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, is committing crimes against humanity in the neighboring country.

According to the minister, China needs to expand relations with Russia as the world becomes more turbulent, and close interactions between the President of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, have solidified relations between the neighbors.

He did not respond to a question about whether Xi Jinping would visit Russia after the Chinese parliament’s session, which lasts another week.

Since Russia invaded its southwestern neighbor a year ago, the Chinese president has spoken several times with Putin, but not with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky.

Asked whether it was possible for China and Russia to abandon the dollar and the euro for bilateral trade, the minister said the countries should use any currency that is efficient, safe and reliable.

China is looking to internationalize the renminbi, or yuan, which gained popularity in Russia last year after Western sanctions closed Russian banks and many of their businesses outside dollar and euro payment systems.

“Currency should not be the trump card for unilateral sanctions, let alone a cover for intimidation or coercion,” Chen said.