Confrontational proposals will sabotage upturn in relations heralded by San Francisco summit: China Daily editorial

In a move that reflects its Cold War mentality, the US House Select Committee on China on Tuesday called for a "reset" of the United States' economic relations with China. In a 53-page report it proposes a slew of recommendations aimed at further restricting or even severing trade and economic links between the two countries.

The proposals include directing the US Commerce Department to impose import duties on legacy Chinese semiconductors, requiring the Federal Reserve to stress-test US banks' ability to withstand a potential loss of market access to China, restricting US federal agencies from buying Chinese-made drones, and banning the Chinese social media platform TikTok.

Committee Chairman Mike Gallagher and ranking member Raja Krishnamoorthi said in a statement that the recommendations would help prevent the flow of US capital and technology from supporting China's military advances and "human rights abuses".

The confrontational move runs counter to the agreement reached by the leaders of the two countries at their meeting in San Francisco in November that the two sides should strengthen communication, manage their differences and expand cooperation. The proposals will likely lead to more anti-China legislative activities in Congress next year and will undoubtedly cast a shadow over the anticipated improvement in bilateral relations.

China and the US are economically interdependent, and the US wielding the stick of sanctions inevitably hurts the interests of the US itself. Even Gallagher admitted that implementing the restrictive measures "will not be without cost". That some in the US have sought unilateral punitive measures instead of using the existing channels of communication such as the Sino-US economic and financial working groups to resolve their differences reflects their hegemonic mindset.

It is deplorable that the world's most important bilateral relationship risks being jeopardized by a handful of selfish US politicians who, with their zero-sum mentality, are intent on political manipulation to provoke China-US rivalry and confrontation.

The Joe Biden administration has stated on multiple occasions that it is glad to see China's development, and has no intention to halt China's economic development or to contain China, nor does it seek "decoupling" from China. Yet the sincerity of those statements has yet to be proved.

For the world's two largest economies, turning their back on each other should not be an option. The proposed restrictive measures, if they are rolled out to contain and suppress China's development, will damage the credibility of the US as a responsible power and push the two countries toward conflict and confrontation that will only cause unbearable consequences for both sides.

Politicians in Washington should keep in mind the broad picture of Sino-US relations and meet China halfway in trying to maintain a stable and healthy relationship. That would be a good New Year's gift for the two countries and a boon for the rest of the world.