MOSCOW, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- The essence of diplomacy is to build bridges, not to burn them, and to establish dialogue where problems arise, Ivan Timofeyev, programs director at the Russian International Affairs Council, has said.

The expert made the remarks in a recent interview with Xinhua, noting that Washington's decision to impose restrictions on Chinese diplomats in the United States is detrimental.

Earlier this month, the U.S. State Department announced that senior Chinese diplomats would be required to seek approval to visit U.S. university campuses and meet with local government officials. Chinese diplomats would also have to get permission to host cultural events with an audience larger than 50 people outside mission properties.

"This will have a bad effect on U.S.-China relations," Timofeyev told Xinhua in an interview following the U.S. announcement.

"At a time when relations are deteriorating, dialogue is needed and diplomats should be more actively involved in such work, but we witness the opposite. They will have fewer opportunities, which is certainly bad," he said.

In his view, the Americans have added ideological points in relations with China and they believe that their political system is the best.

"China is a sovereign state. It is up to the country and its people to decide what kind of economy, state, and so on to have, not the Americans. Beijing does not impose its views on Washington or teach it how to develop the U.S. political system," Timofeyev said.

U.S. fencing off China and attempting to isolate China from technology and markets can harm the United States and its businesses in return, he said.

"China and the United States are two large countries and strong economies, which are highly interdependent. So, if this rivalry goes far, the whole world will suffer from it," Timofeyev said.

The expert also noted that the world has already reacted to the U.S. strategy of unilateral sanctions and all big countries have begun thinking about how to protect themselves.