Chinese FM meets U.S. ambassador

BEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang met with U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns in Beijing on Monday.

China-U.S. relations are of great significance not only to the two countries but also to the world, Qin said, noting the important consensus reached during the meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden last November in Bali, Indonesia.

However, a series of erroneous words and deeds by the U.S. side since then has undermined the hard-won positive momentum of China-U.S. relations, disrupted the planned dialogue and cooperation agenda, and chilled bilateral relations again, Qin said.

"The top priority is to stabilize China-U.S. relations, avoid a downward spiral and prevent accidents from occurring between China and the United States. This should be the basic consensus between the two countries and is also the bottom line that must be upheld when dealing with state-to-state relations, especially ties between two major countries, " Qin added.

Qin said China will follow the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation proposed by President Xi Jinping in handling China-U.S. relations, and urged the United States to deeply reflect and work with China to get the ties back on track.

The United States must stop undermining China's sovereignty, security and development interests, correctly handle the Taiwan question in particular, refrain from hollowing out the one-China principle, and stop supporting or conniving with the "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, the Chinese foreign minister said.

He went on to add that accidental incidents in bilateral relations should be dealt with in a calm, professional and pragmatic manner to avoid further shocks to China-U.S. relations.

Qin expressed the hope that Ambassador Burns will have more contacts, more exchanges and more reflection in China, and make constructive efforts to serve as a bridge between China and the United States.