China US Photo: GT

As for China-US ties, patience is not enough, it also requires sincerity, Chinese Ambassador to the US Cui Tiankai said on Tuesday in his first media interview since Joe Biden took office, a day after White House spokeswoman said Biden wants to approach US-China relations with "patience."

During this period, the US should reflect on its policies on China in recent years to find the problems and then apply more active, constructive and forward-looking policies on China based on the actual world, Cui said during a virtual interview with the China Central Television on Tuesday night. 

"I read the spokeswoman's speech. She basically defines China-US relations as strategic competitive relations and her opinions on China's domestic policies are not very accurate. So I hope the US can use its 'patience' to properly and objectively learn about China, about the current world and China-US ties," Cui noted. 

A fundamental question for the US to answer is if would accept the development of China, which is a very different country from the US. In other words, would the US respect Chinese people's rights to pursue a better life. As long as the US can find an answer to the abovementioned question, they could find solutions to any other problem concerning China-US relations, Cui said.   

A healthy China-US relationship should not be based on pure competition but the coexistence of competition and cooperation, he noted.

About a week after taking office, Biden announced a return to some organizations and agreements the previous administration withdrew from like the World Health Organization and the Paris Agreement. 

However, Cui said that he thought the most urgent thing Biden should do is help the US restore its confidence, optimism and diligence, like what a superpower should be.

In July, 2020, the US ordered China to close its consulate in Houston, following which China ordered the US to close its consulate in Chengdu.

As to the reopening of the consulates, Cui said that the two sides had not started to discuss the issue but it is better for the doer to undo what they had done. And China didn't start the closure, so it should not be up to China to start the reopening, Cui said.