BEIJING – The warning comes amid an ongoing Beijing-Washington trade row,which was triggered when President Donald Trump announced in June that $50billion worth of Chinese goods would be subject to 25 percent tariffs in abid to fix the US-Chinese trade deficit.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has warned other nations against dictating toBeijing, also pledging that China will never pursue hegemony.
“No one is in a position to dictate to the Chinese people what should orshould not be done. We will resolutely reform what can and needs to bereformed, and we will resolutely uphold what cannot and does not need to bechanged”, Xi underscored in a speech marking the 40th anniversary ofChina’s Reform and Opening Up Policy.
Claiming that China is “increasingly approaching the centre of the worldstage”, Xi also noted that Beijing pursues a defensive national policy.
“China’s development does not pose a threat to any country. No matter howfar China develops, it will never seek hegemony”, he pointed out.
Xi also touted the governing Communist Party’s current strategy as“absolutely correct”, and focused on the government’s achievements,recalling, in particular, that foodstuff coupons and other documents“people once could not be without have now been consigned to the museum ofhistory”.
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“The torments of hunger, lack of food and clothing, and the hardships whichhave plagued our people for thousands of years have generally gone andwon’t come back”, he emphasized.
Delegates listen to opening remarks by China’s State Councilor Yang and USDeputy Secretary of State Burns at a session of the S&ED in Washington
The Chinese president’s remarks came a few weeks after his address toSpanish lawmakers, in which he specifically touted Beijing’s efforts tobuild a new modern economic system and stressed that China is interested in“further opening its doors to the world” and easing access to the marketfor investments.
The statement came as Beijing remains embroiled in a trade spat withWashington which escalated after US President Donald Trump slapped 25percent tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods in an attempt totackle the US-Chinese trade deficit. Since then, the two countries haveexchanged several rounds of trade duties against each other. – Sputnik
