Continuity a hallmark of China's US policy
As Beijing has reiterated on different occasions recently, four crucial factors regarding its US policy remain unchanged despite the ups and downs of bilateral ties over the past four years.
Namely, China's desire for a stable, healthy and sustainable China-US relationship remains unchanged; its commitment to mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation as principles for handling China-US relations remains unchanged; its position of resolutely safeguarding China's sovereignty, security and development interests remains unchanged; and its desire to carry forward the traditional friendship between the Chinese and US peoples remains unchanged.
Against the backdrop of many global challenges facing the world today, all countries have strong expectations for friendly China-US relations. Washington should transcend its differences with Beijing and develop a rational perception of China to ensure that Sino-US relations move forward on the right course. Mutual respect is the premise for this, peaceful coexistence is the bottom line, and win-win cooperation is the goal.
China will not accept the US trying to coerce it from "a position of strength". China's firm position of safeguarding its sovereignty, security and development interests will not change because of US suppression.
China is willing to promote the development of Sino-US relations, but will never do so at the cost of giving up its core interests. The one-China principle and the three Sino-US joint communiques are the political foundation for bilateral relations and should be adhered to.
The past four years clearly prove that decoupling is not a solution, and that if the US side insists on politicizing "national security" and using it as an excuse to suppress China, it will only backfire.
The more difficulties bilateral ties face, the more the two sides should do to promote people-to-people exchanges and local cooperation to consolidate the public opinion foundation and expand the space for the development of ties, preventing their relations from veering into conflict. Normal exchanges between the two peoples should not be upset by political factors.
China always handles its US relations with a strong sense of responsibility, maintaining a high degree of continuity and stability in its US policy. It is to be hoped that the US can show reciprocal rationality and foresight in its China policy.