BEIJING, Dec 30: Beijing's top diplomat pitched China on Tuesday as a guardian of stability, praising deepened regional ties while condemning trade wars and vowing to counter US arms sales to Taiwan.
"This year, economic globalisation has taken a severe hit and tariff wars have disrupted the international trade order," Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in a speech in Beijing.
"Facing a chaotic situation for world peace, China is an anchor of stability."
Earlier this year US President Donald Trump announced levies of over 100 percent on Chinese goods, with Beijing responding with high tariffs of its own.
Tensions cooled months later after Trump met his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in South Korea and they agreed to a one-year reprieve.
Speaking at an annual international relations symposium, Wang did not single out Washington for causing trade chaos, but said "cooperation between China and the United States benefits both sides while confrontation harms both".
He also warned the United States -- whose relationship with China he said was one of the world's most important -- against interfering with Beijing's national interests.
Earlier this month, Taipei said Washington had approved an $11-billion arms package, angering Beijing and prompting large-scale military drills around the island. �"AFP
