U.S., China should compete in "racing match," not "boxing match": Chinese ambassador

Photo taken on Sept. 17, 2021 shows the U.S. Capitol building, seen through a barrier fence, in Washington, D.C., the United States. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

Instead of competing with each other in zero-sum game, Washington and Beijing should engage in a "racing match," through which both sides can promote each other and play the best of themselves, said the Chinese ambassador to Washington, Qin Gang.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- The competition between the United States and China is not a "modern boxing match" and should be a "racing match," and it should not be perceived or presumed as beating the other to the ground, the Chinese ambassador to Washington, Qin Gang, has said.

Qin made the remarks during a recent joint interview with chief editors and senior correspondents of major American media outlets, which was held by Bloomberg New Economy Forum.

Instead of competing with each other in zero-sum game, Washington and Beijing should engage in a "racing match," through which both sides can promote each other and play the best of themselves, Qin said.

Meanwhile, both sides can also seek opportunities for cooperation during competition, so that they can make themselves stronger while allowing the other side to grow and develop, he said, noting that the competition should be held in a fair and healthy manner.

U.S. President Joe Biden returns to the White House in Washington D.C., the United States on Dec. 20, 2021. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)

"President Biden said he hopes to have a good relationship with China. He doesn't want to mess up this relationship. But the U.S. is defining the mainstream of U.S.-China relations as competition. We don't agree," said Qin.

Such a definition neglects the fact that cooperation has been the mainstream of our relations in the past 40 years, he said.

"By keeping competing with each other, it will raise the risk of confrontation and conflict," Qin said while making an analogy to elaborate on his point. "It's just like a hypertension patient. If his blood pressure keeps rising, it may cause a heart attack or a stroke which will endanger his life. If a hypertension patient goes to see a doctor, the doctor's first thing to do is to have this pressure lower. Don't wait until the heart attack or stroke comes up."

Speaking of fair and healthy competition, Qin said "'fair' means both sides need to abide by the norms governing international relations. We have internationally recognized rules, such as the principles of the United Nations Charter and World Trade Organization' rules."

However, "the current competition is not fair. The U.S. side is using competition to contain China's development," said the ambassador, citing examples of how Chinese companies have been restricted, how the national security concept is being overstretched and abused, and how many Chinese companies are delisted or facing the fate of being delisted.

"It's like a cut-throat competition. It's a violent attack. This is what I'm worried about, " Qin said.

"The United States is trying to mobilize allies to kick China out of the international system. China is now being kicked globally, not only in the United States, in terms of industrial line, supply line and high-tech line," he said.

"This is an unhealthy competition and must stop," said Qin.