Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi makes a speech during the 56th Munich Security Conference at Bayerischer Hof Hotel in Munich, Germany on February 15, 2020.
Abdulhamid Hosbas | Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
MUNICH — China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Saturday that U.S. criticisms of Beijing were “lies” and blamed Washington for the tumultuous relationship between the world’s two largest economies.
“The root cause of all these problems and issues is that the U.S. does not want to see rapid development and rejuvenation of China, still less would they want to accept the success of a socialist country, but that is not fair, China has the right to develop,” Wang said during a discussion at the Munich Security Conference.
“China’s drive towards modernization is an inevitable trend of history and will not be held back or stopped by any force in the world because it represents the direction of human progress,” he added.
Wang’s comments at the Munich Security Conference followed those of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, both delivering back-to-back speeches accusing China of malign activities.
“China encroaches on the exclusive economic zones of Vietnam, the Philippines, and Indonesia. And on that point, China has had a border or maritime dispute with nearly every nation bordering it,” Pompeo told an audience at the security forum. “And let’s talk for a second about the other realm, cybersecurity. Huawei and other Chinese state-backed tech companies are Trojan horses for Chinese intelligence,” he added.
Esper said Beijing was caring out a “nefarious strategy” through telecommunications firm Huawei. “It is essential that we as an international community wake up to the challenges presented by Chinese manipulation of the long-standing international rules-based order,” he warned.
Secretary of Defense Mark Esper speaks at Munich Security Conference on February 15, 2020.
Munich Security Conference | Kuhlmann
When asked about the speeches made by Pompeo and Esper, Wang dismissed U.S. criticisms and said that Beijing would continue to seek a better relationship with Washington.
“This has become a common scenario, they say basically the same thing everywhere they go about China, and I don’t want to waste our time responding to each and every thing they’ve said. The thing I want to say is that all these accusations against China are lies and not based on facts,” Wang said of Pompeo and Esper’s comments.
“The most important task for China and the U.S. is to sit down together, have a serious dialogue and find a way for two major countries with different social systems to live in harmony and interact in peace. China is ready and we hope the U.S. will work with us in the same direction,” he added.
