FM highlights significance of relations, emphasizes necessity of multipolarity

Calling 2026 a "big year" for China-United States relations, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Sunday that the agenda for bilateral high-level exchanges "is already on the table", and both sides need to "treat each other with sincerity and good faith".

"China is always committed and open. It is critical that the US side work in the same direction," Wang said at a news conference on the sidelines of the annual two sessions in Beijing.

"What the two sides need to do now is to create a suitable environment, manage the differences that do exist, and remove unnecessary disruptions," he said.

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President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump have been maintaining good interactions at the top level, the foreign minister noted.

The two leaders "have provided important strategic safeguards for the China-US relationship to improve and move forward, and they have brought the relationship back on an even keel after the ups and downs", he added.

When the two sides treat each other with sincerity and good faith, they will be able to lengthen the list of cooperation areas and shorten the list of problems, the minister said.

Also, by doing so, the two sides can produce results that are satisfactory to both peoples, achieve a consensus that is welcomed by the whole world, and make 2026 "a landmark year of sound, steady and sustainable development of China-US relations", he added.

Regarding the ties' far-reaching and global implications, Wang said that "sliding into conflict or confrontation could drag the whole world down".

"Neither side can remodel the other, but we can choose how we want to engage, that is, to commit to a spirit of mutual respect, to hold the bottom line of peaceful coexistence, and to strive for the prospect of win-win cooperation," he said.

Chen Bo, president of the China Institute of International Studies, said Wang's comments "illustrate Beijing's proactive gesture in advancing ties with major countries and its goal to break new ground in seeking peaceful common growth".

Whether China-US ties can take a solid step forward this year "largely depends on whether Washington will work toward the same goal with Beijing", she said.

Jia Qingguo, a professor and the director of Peking University's Institute for Global Cooperation and Understanding, said, "As long as the US' overarching goal of seeking strategic competition against China remains unchanged, the US government will continue introducing hardline policies targeting China, and in that case Beijing surely will respond."

"The two sides should step up communication and interactions at various levels", and through dialogue mechanisms of different levels and formats, the two sides can quickly clarify their positions when a problem arises, put it under control at its initial stage and avoid escalation, said Jia, who is also a deputy to the National People's Congress.

When asked whether Beijing accepts the "G2" concept, which suggests that the US and China co-manage global governance, Wang said that "we should not forget there are more than 190 countries on our planet".

"The future of humanity will be forged through the collective efforts of all nations", and "multipolarity is what the international landscape should look like", he said.

He noted that, in history, great-power rivalry and bloc confrontation have invariably inflicted disaster and pain on humanity.

"Therefore, China will never take the beaten path of seeking hegemony as its strength grows, nor do we subscribe to the logic that the world can be run by major countries," he said.

Wang stressed that building an equal and orderly multipolar world should be the common responsibility of all countries.

"With more resources and capabilities, major countries should be more generous, shoulder more responsibilities, and set an example of observing rules, honoring commitments and upholding international law," he added.

When talking about the head-of-state diplomacy that Beijing has planned for this year, the minister said President Xi will host guests from various countries and "undertake several important visits abroad".

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Xi will chair major diplomatic events hosted by China, including the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting and the second China-Arab States Summit, Wang said.

"Head-of-state diplomacy is bound to further advance China's relations with the world in a positive direction, open up new space for building a community with a shared future for humanity, and enable the Chinese nation to make new, greater contributions to world peace and development," he added.

Gao Fei, president of China Foreign Affairs University, said that "China's major-country diplomacy has entered a phase of yielding greater achievements" under the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy and head-of-state diplomacy.

"The country's diplomacy effectively secures its own development, facilitates world peace and stability, and spreads innovation, win-win spirit, inclusiveness and great morality," he added.

Contact the writers at zhangyunbi@chinadaily.com.cn