Chinese Ambassador Criticizes US Trade War Actions

A U.S. decoupling from China would be a mistake, China’s U.S. ambassador said, criticizing what he called the U.S.’s alarmist foreign policy and its “wrong rationale” for starting a trade war with China. Ambassador Cui Tiankai said decoupling may not even be possible because of the “inseparable links” between the two countries. “And considering China’s advantages in cost, market and supply chain and its growing edge in innovation, to decouple from China is to decouple from opportunities,” Cui said, speaking Sept. 17 in New York.

Cui said the trade war is “still taking tolls” and blamed the U.S. for starting it. “It is fully understandable that there may be some temporary jitters about a fast-developing China,” Cui said. “But it is extremely dangerous and irresponsible to base America’s policy on alarmism and label China as a strategic rival and even adversary.”

He said U.S. actions have “repeatedly escalated” the war and damaged global economies and U.S. citizens. “In this trade war, ordinary Americans bear the brunt of losses, and opposition has been voiced across the country,” Cui said.

Cui also warned the U.S. to stay out of China-Taiwan affairs. China threatened sanctions against the U.S. in August after the State Department approved a potential $8 billion sale of military goods to Taiwan (see 1908210035). “It is extremely unwise for the U.S. side to touch the red line time and again, as it will cause long-term damage to our relations and even get America embroiled in an unwanted conflict,” Cui said.

But Cui also complemented the U.S., saying it is “open, innovative and confident” and stressed that better cooperation between the two sides is the only way to end the trade war. “Whether it can take an open and confident approach to China’s development will affect its future,” Cui said, “and will determine the direction of China-U.S. relations and very probably the future of the world.”