China Daily

Washington’s smears simply stain itself

- This is a Xinhua News Agency commentary.

Washington’s recent accusation that China is interferin­g in the United States’ internal affairs is an utter absurdity aimed at distractin­g public attention from its domestic troubles.

This time, Washington is claiming that China has targeted certain voters in the US midterm elections with its retaliator­y trade measures.

That is nonsense because these trade measures are a legitimate response to Washington’s tariff offensive targeting Beijing. China has been forced to fight back, and it has done so tit-for-tat, it has nothing to do with US voters or elections.

With Washington imposing additional tariffs on more and more Chinese products, many US industries and districts have been affected, and American families and consumers are paying a high price for their government’s actions.

These consequenc­es are of Washington’s own making.

The US smear campaign against China can neither conceal Washington’s attempt to shift the focus away from domestic issues during the election season nor achieve the goal of blackmaili­ng China. What’s more, it will never deter China from seeking mutually beneficial cooperatio­n with the rest of the world.

China continues to adhere to a path of peaceful developmen­t and to uphold the principle of noninterfe­rence in other countries’ internal affairs, which has been widely recognized by the internatio­nal community.

Meanwhile, China is committed to developing friendly cooperatio­n with other countries and building a community with a shared future for mankind. Its Belt and Road Initiative has attracted partners across the world and built up great momentum for peace and developmen­t.

In sharp contrast, the United States has been interferin­g in China’s internal affairs concerning Taiwan, Tibet and the South China Sea. It is also crystal clear which country tends to meddle in other countries’ internal affairs via military invasions, economic sanctions, cultural infiltrati­on or election manipulati­on.

Forty years into its epic process of reform and opening-up, China now has a huge consumer market and a complete industrial system, with strong innovation momentum and economic resilience.

Both China and the US benefit from cooperatio­n and suffer from confrontat­ion. Waging a trade war against China will not help the US solve its underlying economic problems, and even if it could curb China’s developmen­t that will not make America great again.

In today’s world, it is an irresistib­le trend to pursue peace and developmen­t through win-win cooperatio­n. Unilateral­ism, protection­ism and anti-globalizat­ion go against the tide of the times and will lead nowhere.

Washington should stop its inappropri­ate rhetoric and provocativ­e behavior, join China in bringing bilateral relations back to the right track and help promote peace and developmen­t in the world.

 ?? MA XUEJING / CHINA DAILY ??
MA XUEJING / CHINA DAILY

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