China urges joint efforts before highly-anticipated Xi-Biden meeting

Ahead of the highly-anticipated meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden, a Chinese official on Monday called for joint efforts from both sides to bring bilateral relations back on track. 

China hopes the U.S. will act on its commitment of not seeking a new Cold War with China, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning in response to a query about the upcoming China-U.S. summit meeting.

China doesn't seek to change the U.S., nor should the U.S. seek to shape or change China, Mao said.

The Chinese government has confirmed that Xi is set to meet with Biden in San Francisco, where the two leaders will also attend the 30th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting.

Mao said China views and handles its relations with the U.S. in accordance with the three principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation proposed by President Xi Jinping. Major-country competition runs counter to the trend of our times and provides no answer to the problems in the U.S. or the challenges in our world.

"China does not fear competition, but we do not agree that China-U.S. relations should be defined by competition," said Mao.

Speaking of concerns, the U.S. needs to respect China's concerns and legitimate right to development, rather than emphasizing its own concerns at the expense of China's interests, Mao added.

"To seek to remodel other countries in one's own image is wishful thinking in the first place and typical hegemonism which is going nowhere," she said.

Mao stressed that the Taiwan question is China's internal affair and resolving it is a matter for the Chinese that brook no foreign interference.

"Successive U.S. administrations have made clear commitments on the Taiwan question," Mao said. During the summit meeting in Bali, the U.S. said explicitly that the U.S. government doesn't support "Taiwan independence," Mao noted. 

"The U.S. needs to honor its commitment to one China and oppose 'Taiwan independence' with concrete actions," Mao pointed out.

Over the South China Sea issue, China is committed to settling relevant disputes through negotiation and consultation with relevant countries and will not waver in our determination to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, Mao said.

"China will neither take any inch of territory that is not ours, nor give up any inch of territory that belongs to us," Mao said, urging the U.S. to stop creating pretexts and interfering in the disputes between China and relevant countries over territorial and maritime rights and interests.

Noting the world is paying close attention to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Mao said China stands on the side of equity and justice, stays in close contact with relevant parties and is committed to deescalation and protection of civilians. 

"We hope that the U.S. will follow an objective and just stance and play a constructive role in halting the conflict," said Mao.