Chinese Ambassador to the United States, Qin Gang, said competition does exist between China and the U.S., but the competition should not be a zero-sum game. 

Qin made the remarks during his recent "fireside chats" with several mainstream U.S. media. The Chinese embassy in the U.S. published the interview transcript on Friday. 

Noting the competition between the two countries should be fair and healthy, Qin stressed the competition shouldn't be a boxing match, but a race, where both sides can reinforce each other and both perform their best. 

In response to the question "What kind of U.S.-China relationship do you think the Joe Biden administration wants to develop," Qin pointed out Biden's government defines bilateral ties as "competition," which China does not agree with. 

It ignores the element of cooperation that has been the keynote of bilateral ties for the past 40 years, he added. 

The ambassador noted if the two countries continue to compete, the risk of confrontation and conflict will continue to rise. 

Qin further explained what he means by "fair competition," saying both sides need to abide by the accepted norms of international relations, rather than having one side set the rules for the other to follow.  

"We need to abide by internationally recognized rules such as the UN Charter and WTO regulations," he pointed out, adding the competition should not be seen as trying to knock out the opponent. 

Qin also said that the current "competition" between the U.S. and China is not fair, and that the U.S. is using "competition" as a reason to curb China's development.  

He listed some cases such as many Chinese companies are being suppressed by the U.S. for no reason, the concept of national security is infinitely enlarged and abused, and many Chinese companies are put on various control lists or delisted in the U.S.   

The U.S. is trying to mobilize its allies to exclude China from the current international system, and Chinese companies are not only restricted on U.S. soil, but also at risk of being excluded from the global industrial, supply and technology chains, the ambassador stressed, 

He urged the U.S. to stop such "vicious competition."