China calls for reset in Sino-US relations

Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi said on Monday the United States and China could work together on issues like climate change and the coronavirus pandemic if they repaired their damaged bilateral relationship.

Wang, a Chinese state councillor and foreign minister, said Beijing stood ready to reopen constructive dialogue with Washington after relations between the two countries sank to their lowest in decades under former president Donald Trump.

Wang called on Washington to remove tariffs on Chinese goods and abandon what he said was an irrational suppression of the Chinese tech sector, steps he said would create the "necessary conditions" for cooperation. Before Wang spoke at a forum sponsored by the foreign ministry, officials played footage of the "ping-pong diplomacy" of 1972 when an exchange of table tennis players cleared the way for then U.S. President Richard Nixon to visit China.

Wang urged Washington to respect China's core interests, stop "smearing" the ruling Communist Party, stop interfering in Beijing's internal affairs and stop "conniving" with separatist forces for Taiwan's independence.

"Over the past few years, the United States basically cut off bilateral dialogue at all levels," Wang said in prepared remarks translated into English.

"We stand ready to have candid communication with the U.S. side, and engage in dialogues aimed at solving problems." Wang pointed to a recent call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden as a positive step.

Washington and Beijing have clashed on multiple fronts including trade, accusations of human rights crimes against the Uighur Muslim minorities in the Xinjiang region and Beijing's territorial claims in the resources-rich South China Sea. The Biden administration has, however, signalled it will maintain pressure on Beijing.

Biden has voiced concern about Beijing's "coercive and unfair" trade practices and endorsed of a Trump administration determination that China has committed genocide in Xinjiang. However, Biden has also pledged to take a more multilateral approach and is keen to cooperate with Beijing on issues like climate change and persuading North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons.

Meanwhile, "Loopholes" in Hong Kong's laws must be closed to ensure the city is governed by "patriots", a top Beijing official said on Monday, signalling changes to the Chinese-ruled city's electoral system, potentially as early as next month.

Any changes could further limit who could run in a postponed legislative election and may lead to the disqualification of most lower-level district councillors - the majority of them being pro-democracy politicians, sources have told Reuters. Reforms could also further skew a committee electing the city's leader in favour of the pro-Beijing camp.

"Patriots" included those who loved China, its constitution and the Communist Party and excluded antiChina "troublemakers", said Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, China's cabinet. One direct reason for "anti China" movements in Hong Kong was that the principle of patriots ruling the city was not fully implemented, Xia said.