Chinese vice foreign minister calls for China-U.S. relations being put back on track

BEIJING, April 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng has said that China-U.S. relations should be put back on track.

In an exclusive interview with the Associated Press on Sunday, Le pointed out that the U.S. side disproportionately stresses competition and confrontation, and plays down cooperation.

"Such an approach is too negative and lacks a forward-going spirit," Le said.

Le said for two big countries like China and the United States, competition might be inevitable. "But competition must be healthy, and should not be allowed to become a vicious zero-sum game," he noted.

"We also need to do our best to expand cooperation, as it benefits both sides," he added.

Le noted that COVID-19 response and economic recovery are the two areas where China-U.S. cooperation could be critically important, saying "China is not an adversary and even less an enemy for the United States."

"On issues such as epidemic response and development, our two countries could be teammates and partners. The United States should not mistake teammates as adversaries," he added.