Chinese ambassador: China doesn't seek global dominance

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Chinese Ambassador to the US Cui Tiankai said China is not seeking global dominance on Wednesday in an interview with CNN, Xinhua news agency reported.

"We don't think there is a zero-sum game between China and the United States," he said.

Cui made the remarks two days after the Trump administration released its first national security strategy, touting its "America First" doctrine and naming China and Russia as "rival powers" challenging American influence and interest.

For any strategy to look truly like a "strategy," it should embody "a truly global outlook," "a forward-looking vision" and "a constructive and cooperative approach," said Cui in the interview about the 68-page document.

US President Donald Trump announces his administration's national security strategy in Washington, DC, Dec. 18. /AFP Photo

"Frankly I think the current strategy could be improved in all these aspects," he said. "China is not seeking global dominance, we believe in today's world all countries are confronted with a lot of common challenges, and we do share growing common interests."

"We don't think there is a zero-sum game between any country, especially between China and the United States," Cui said. "What is important for us is to form a wide-base global partnership to respond to the common challenges."

China-US trade relationship is mutually beneficial

Cui said that the China-US trade relationship has become increasingly connected and interdependent, and both economies and peoples have benefited from it.

"China will continue to open its door wider to the rest of the world," and the huge and growing Chinese market is providing tremendous opportunities to US business, said the ambassador.

Meanwhile, Cui acknowledged the existence of conflicting views about the bilateral relationship in the US. "This is not something entirely new, it's been with us for maybe decades, and we have to stress and put emphasis on the growing common interest and mutual needs between our countries."

"The leaders of our two countries have had very good meetings in Mar-a-Lago, in the US state of Florida, and in Beijing, and we have also established high-level dialogue mechanisms which have worked well for both countries," Cui said.

Countries like the US and China have to follow a very positive, cooperative and constructive approach while "dealing with some possible differences," he said.

Cui noted that any trade war or currency war will hurt both countries, saying that China and the US have to coordinate their positions to "have a full understanding of the concerns and the needs of the other side and try to build a position that will take care of the interests of both countries."

"That will bring a win-win outcome for all of us," the ambassador added.

Korean Peninsula crisis

In the nearly 10-minute interview, Cui also talked about the crisis on the Korean Peninsula, stating that China and the US have shared goals on the issue.

"We both stand up the denuclearization of the entire Korean Peninsula, we both want to maintain peace and stability, and we both prefer a diplomatic solution to the issue," Cui said.

"Cooperation and coordination between China and the US have played a big part in strengthening international efforts to address this particular issue, and we should continue" in this regard, said the ambassador.