TOP BEIJING ENVOY SCORES U.S. FOR BEING ‘TOO NEGATIVE’ TOWARD CHINA

A top Chinese diplomat said Friday that US policy toward China is “too negative” and that cooperation could be critically important as the Biden administration focuses on combatting COVID-19 and promoting economic recovery.

The US appears to be highlighting confrontation and playing down cooperation, Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng said in a wide-ranging interview with Ken Moritsugu of the Associated Press (AP) that came out on April 17, 2021.

“Such an approach, I must say, is too negative,” he said, adding that it lacks “a forward-looking spirit.” China could be a partner as Biden tackles the coronavirus and the economy, he said. “To me it is hard to imagine the two priorities can be resolved without a cooperative and healthy China-U.S. relationship,” he said.

Le also signaled that China is unlikely to make any new pledges at a climate change meeting called by President Joe Biden for next week. He spoke as Biden’s climate envoy, John Kerry, was discussing the issue on the second day of closed-door meetings with Chinese counterparts in Shanghai.

Chinese President Xi Jinping announced last year that China would be carbon-neutral by 2060 and aim to reach a peak in its emissions by 2030. “For a big country with 1.4 billion people, these goals are not easily delivered,” Le said. “Some countries are asking China to do more on climate change. I am afraid this is not very realistic.”

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