Zhang Yesui (center), spokesperson for the fifth session of the 13th National People's Congress, speaks during a press conference via video link in Beijing, capital of China, March 4, 2022. (CHEN YEHUA / XINHUA)
BEIJING – Taking China as a rival will only undermine the China-US mutual trust and cooperation, said a Chinese spokesperson Friday.
Mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation should be the right approach for China and the United States to get along with each other in the new era, Zhang Yesui, spokesperson for the fifth session of the 13th National People's Congress, said at a press conference.
The practices of drawing lines based on ideology, forming exclusive circles and stoking confrontation between blocs all go against the trend of the times and will lead to nowhere, said Zhang Yesui, spokesperson for the fifth session of the 13th NPC
To use China's development as an excuse and take China as a strategic rival will only erode the mutual trust and cooperation between the two countries, and will eventually hurt its own interests of the United States, the spokesperson noted.
The practices of drawing lines based on ideology, forming exclusive circles and stoking confrontation between blocs all go against the trend of the times and will lead to nowhere, he said.
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Stable ties between China and the United States are good for the development of both sides, and conducive to maintaining international peace and effectively responding to climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic and other global challenges, Zhang added.
Countering containment
On China's Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law, Zhang said it is a defensive measure to counter containment and oppression, and is essentially different from the unilateral sanctions pursued by some countries.
A reporter asks a question during a press conference of the fifth session of the 13th National People's Congress via video link in Beijing, capital of China, March 4, 2022. (PHOTO/XINHUA)
Noting that it is a common practice in many countries to respond to foreign sanctions, interference and long-arm jurisdiction through legislation, Zhang said that the law is a special one with "countering" being an outstanding feature.
China does not seek to provoke trouble, nor will it cringe should any trouble come its way.
Zhang Yesui, spokesperson for the fifth session of the 13th NPC
Facing bullying including arbitrary sanctions, China resorts to legal means to resolutely safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests and protect the legitimate rights and interests of its people and institutions, Zhang said.
"China does not seek to provoke trouble, nor will it cringe should any trouble come its way," he said.
Zhang said it has been China's consistent position to develop friendly relations with other countries on the basis of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence.
"We all along stand against hegemony and power politics," he added.
One-China principle
In response to relations between China and Lithuania, Zhang said the one-China principle is the political foundation for China to develop bilateral relations with all countries.
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The one-China principle is an overwhelming consensus of the international community and a widely recognized norm governing international relations, Zhang said.
"In last November, the Lithuanian government allowed the Taiwan authorities to set up a so-called 'Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania,' which severely violates the one-China principle and the political commitment made by Lithuania in the communique on the establishment of diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China," Zhang said.
Lithuania should take full responsibility for the problems in the current relations with China, the spokesperson noted.