Chinese officials call for improved ties with US

BEIJING (AP) — Beijing will honor its trade deal with the U.S. and wants to see better ties with Washington, senior Chinese officials said Thursday.

Zhu Guangyao, a former finance minister and Cabinet advisor, said the two countries should “waste no time” in improving relations to help better coordinate a response to the coronavirus pandemic.

He and other officials told reporters in Beijing that the two biggest economies are so closely entwined that they must find a way to work together because a lack of cooperation has come at a “high price.”

“The close connection between the Chinese and U.S. economies is the result of four decades of hard work on both sides, and that is also the reflection of the wishes of consumers in China and the United States,” Zhu said.

“Such interdependence will not disappear simply because some people clamor for ‘decoupling.'”

Zhu said relations with the U.S. were “far from satisfactory” with communications at a “standstill.”

“We hope through communications we can enhance our cooperation and mutual trust," he said.

Tensions have flared over Beijing's handling of the new coronavirus that first surfaced in central China late last year and over the recent passage of legislation requiring the semi-autonomous territory of Hong Kong to implement a national security law.

The law has added to worries that the former British colony is losing the special status Beijing promised it when it took control in 1997.

President Donald Trump's administration reacted to the move by announcing that Hong Kong is no longer autonomous and will be stripped of its preferential trade and commercial status.

The officials insisted China is following through on promises to by buy more U.S. products and other commitments.

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