China, US should focus on cooperation while respecting differences, Kong says

A veteran diplomat said that China has no intention of competing with other countries and seeking hegemony, and he called on the United States to view China's development objectively.

Kong Quan, deputy head of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said what China expects is a peaceful and stable external environment so that it can be better committed to its own development and at the same time bring development opportunities to other countries.

China and the US should focus on cooperation to seek common development while respecting their differences, Kong said, noting that it is these differences that create the chances for cooperation. Kong previously served as a Foreign Ministry spokesman and China's ambassador to France.

He said that the two countries can engage in cooperation in areas of COVID-19 prevention, economic growth and climate change, which are also the top priorities faced by US President Joe Biden.

"International cooperation is essential for addressing these challenges facing all mankind and China apparently enjoys an advantageous position in the global arena on these areas," Kong said.

For example, there is a lot that the two countries can do in sharing their good practices in COVID-19 prevention and vaccine research, he said.

The senior diplomat pointed out that while China is sincere about cooperation with the US, Washington's willful damage to Beijing's interests, such as its suppression of Chinese companies under the pretext of so-called national security, will not be allowed.

Over the past four years, the previous US presidential administration adopted some extremely wrong and ridiculous measures in dealing with its relations with China, which have been responded to with necessary measures by the Chinese side.

China will firmly safeguard its sovereignty, security and development interests, Kong said.

Faced with certain Western countries' attempts to interfere in China's internal affairs on issues that relate to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Taiwan and the Xinjiang Uygur and Tibet autonomous regions, China will only react with more powerful measures, he added.

Kong also dismissed the doubts raised by some Western media and politicians on China's efforts to offer vaccines to other countries.

"Facts speak louder than words," he said, adding that in fact many more people are expressing their admiration for China's effective efforts to contain the virus and their appreciation for vaccines provided by China.

China has provided and is providing COVID-19 vaccine aid free of charge to 69 developing countries in urgent need, while also exporting vaccines to 43 countries, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a news conference on Sunday.

Except for the deliberate slandering of China by some anti-China forces, Kong said that some people, especially in Western countries, will guard against or even fear China because they lack understanding of the fast-changing country.

Stories of China

In the future, more efforts should be made to enable the world to know in various ways that China is committed to a peaceful development path and is dedicated to improving people's livelihoods, he said.

As this year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, telling the stories of China's development process will help more foreign countries to better understand the choice of the Chinese people, that is, a socialist country led by the CPC, Kong added.