Beijing: The armies of China and the US should avoid conflict and confrontation, Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe said on Friday.
The minister said the US should be rational about China’s development and growth, and “should not attack, vilify, contain or pressure China, should not interfere in China’s internal affairs and harm its interests.”
“Stable relations between the armed forces are essential for the development of bilateral interstate relations, the armies of the two countries should avoid conflict and confrontation,” Wei said at a meeting with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on the sidelines of Asia’s top security summit, Shangri-La Dialogue, in Singapore, as quoted by state-run CCTV.
China hopes to develop “healthy and stable” relations with the US, which should be achieved by joint efforts of both countries, the minister added.
Commenting on the Taiwan issue, the minister said any attempts to use Taipei to control Beijing are doomed to fail.
“The US has recently re-announced arms sales to Taiwan, this is seriously damaging to China’s sovereignty and security interests, Beijing strongly opposes and strongly condemns it,” Wei added.
