Beijing-Moscow ties ‘not a threat,’ says China’s foreign minister
Beijing, Mar 7 (EFE).- Beijing’s close ties with Moscow advance global multipolarization and are not a threat to any country, China’s foreign minister said Tuesday.
Holding his first public press conference since he replaced Wang Yi in December, Qin Gang spoke on the sidelines of the 14th National People’s Congress in Beijing.
“China and Russia have found a path of major country relations featuring strategic trust and good neighborliness, setting a good example for international relations,” Qin said.
“Some countries who are inclined to view China-Russia relations through the lens of Cold War alliances see nothing but their own image. The China-Russia relationship is based on no alliance and no confrontation and it is not targeted at any third party. It is not a threat to any country, nor is it subject to any interference or discord sown by any third party.”
He assured that with China and Russia working together, “the world will have the driving force toward multipolarity and greater democracy in international relations, and global strategic balance and stability will be better ensured.”
“The more unstable the world becomes, the more imperative it is for China and Russia to steadily advance their relations,” Qin added.
At the press conference, in which the questions were agreed upon in advance and to which prominent correspondents in the country did not have access, Qin stressed that the country’s new Global Security Initiative (GSI) is committed to multilateralism that opposes the “confrontation” of blocs.
The GSI is a project announced by President Xi Jinping in April 2022 and opposes the use of sanctions on the international stage.
The concept paper calls for major powers to “facilitate talks for peace” and “mediate in light of the needs and will of the countries concerned,” and urges nations to “practice true multilateralism” and to reject “Cold War mentality, unilateralism, bloc confrontation and hegemonism.”
The Asian giant has maintained an ambiguous position on the war in Ukraine, within which it has called for respect for the territorial integrity and attention to the legitimate concerns of all countries. EFE
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