BEIJING - One of China's top diplomats has called for Beijing and Washington to resume talks and reset relations, just weeks before the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden in the United States.
Foreign minister Wang Yi, in a video call on Monday (Dec 7) with the board members of the US-China Business Council (USBC), said that the "most urgent task" for both countries was to ensure a smooth transition of ties, adding that they should work together.
"At the same time, the two countries should follow a direction that conforms to the interest of both countries' people, and strive to restart dialogue, return to the right track, and rebuild mutual trust in the next phase of China-US relations," said Mr Wang.
With the Trump administration on the way out, Beijing has been actively signalling that it desires a reset in relations that have nosedived under President Donald Trump.
Mr Wang is the latest Chinese official to do so.
State news agency Xinhua, in a readout of that video call, said Mr Wang laid out Beijing's suggestions for healthy and stable development of ties.
This included strengthening communication and dialogue, he said.
"China and the US should open dialogue at all levels. Any issue can be brought to the table for discussion, whether they are strategic, overall or long-term issues, there can be communication," he said.
"China's door to dialogue is open at all times."
He added that both sides can conduct "consultations on specific issues" to search for breakthroughs or results to boost trust. The foreign minister did not elaborate on the issues.
"For problems that cannot be solved for the time being, we must take a constructive attitude to manage and control them to avoid intensification and escalation affecting the overall situation of China-US ties," said Mr Wang.
The comments come just days after the Trump administration slapped fresh travel restrictions on Chinese Communist Party members over human rights abuses in Xinjiang.
Washington is planning further sanctions on at least a dozen officials this week over their role in the disqualification of pro-democracy lawmakers in Hong Kong, Bloomberg reported on Monday.
President Trump is putting increasing pressure on China in his last days in office, a move observers say is targeted at cementing his legacy of being tough on the country.
In his time in the White House, he has launched a trade war against China, sanctioned its technology companies and pushed to decouple the economies of both countries.
Mr Biden, who is set to take office on Jan 20, has said that, contrary to his predecessor, he would take a more multilateral approach to confronting China.
While he did not explicitly name Mr Trump, Mr Wang said the reason for the current state of relations between both countries is because "some people on the American side hold on to outdated Cold War mentality and ideological prejudices".
He added that Beijing expects and believes that Washington's China policy will sooner or later "return to objectivity and rationality".
Chinese President Xi Jinping hinted at the prospect of a reset in ties when he congratulated Mr Biden late last month, saying that he hoped both sides could pursue healthy and stable relations.
Last month, former Chinese vice-foreign minister Fu Ying also wrote in a rare commentary in The New York Times that both sides had to hold candid talks to cultivate the trust needed to tackle global challenges.
One Chinese analyst says it is "very clear" that Beijing wants to seize the opportunity presented by a new administration to kick-start a reset in ties with the US.
"The most important thing for China now is to continuously strengthen the development of its economy and core technologies. If China-US relations fall into a new cold war, it will be detrimental to China's economic and technological development," said Zhu Feng, professor of international relations at Nanjing University.
