China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi called on the new U.S. administration to end its “suppression” of Chinese technology companies and remove tariffs on Chinese exports, as he laid out the “necessary conditions” for repairing bilateral ties.

“We hope that the U.S. side will adjust its policies as soon as possible, among others, remove unreasonable tariffs on Chinese goods, lift its unilateral sanctions on Chinese companies and research and educational institutes, and abandon irrational suppression of China’s technological progress,” Wang said at the opening of the Lanting Forum in Beijing on Monday.

In his first speech since President Joe Biden took office, Wang said China-U.S. relations deviated from the right track and faced the biggest challenge since bilateral ties were established.

Wang blamed the damaged relations on the Donald Trump administration, which he accused of “seriously distorting China’s future path and policy” and taking measures to contain China.

China is ready to work with the U.S. in areas such COVID-19, climate change and world economic recovery, said Wang. But he stressed the need for America to respect China’s “core interests,” urging the U.S. to stop smearing the Chinese Communist Party and interfering in the country’s internal affairs by supporting Taiwan, Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet. They are among the necessary changes in policies for China-U.S. relations to move forward, he reiterated.

“Over a long time, Western countries have either seriously distorted or misunderstood China on democracy. In fact, democracy is not a patent of a few countries. There are various ways to realize democracy, and there is no fixed model or standard answer,” the senior diplomat added.

Speaking at the same event, Cui Tiankai, the Chinese ambassador to the U.S., said “China will never back down, and the red line must be followed” on issues concerning China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, Xinjiang and Tibet.

“Some people in the U.S. are inclined to use their own definition of democracy and other values to draw the line, and label other countries according to their own preference,” said Cui.

“When faced with countries differing from them, they would naturally have a bias, and would close ranks with the West to take on the rest with sanctions and confrontation. This is undemocratic in the most typical sense,” he added.

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