(Reuters) – The United States should choose dialogue and consultation with China instead of pursuing “unacceptable” unilateral sanctions against Chinese companies, China’s State Councillor and foreign minister Wang Yi said on Friday.
He urged the United States to stop “overstretching the notion of national security” and “arbitrary suppression of Chinese companies”.
“We need to replace sanctions with dialogue and consultation,” he said in a special address to the Asia Society that focused mainly on the state of Sino-U.S. relations.
Washington confirmed on Friday it would add dozens of Chinese companies, including the country’s top chipmaker, SMIC, to a trade blacklist, a move seen as the latest in President Donald Trump’s efforts to cement his tough-on-China legacy.
Beijing has taken note of the four policy priorities of U.S. President-elect Joe Biden, who is set to take office on Jan. 20, Wang added, and believes at least three of them – COVID-19 response, economic recovery and climate change – provide room for cooperation between the two countries.
Reporting by Tom Daly; Editing by Mark Heinrich