US' positive words will ring hollow unless it matches them with deeds: China Daily editorial

In his opening remarks to President Xi Jinping during their video call on Friday evening, US President Joe Biden reiterated that his administration is not seeking to change China's system or wage a Cold War against China, and it does not support "Taiwan independence".

That he felt the need to clarify this shows that he is fully aware that there is a mismatch between what his administration says and what it does.

That is why the China-US relationship, instead of getting out of the predicament created by the previous US administration, has encountered a growing number of challenges.

Xi said he took Biden's remarks "very seriously", stressing it was the United States not acting on those "positive statements" that were hindering any improvement in relations.

He noted in particular that some people in the US were sending a wrong and "very dangerous" signal to "Taiwan independence" forces.

Less than a day before the meeting, the guided missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson transited the Taiwan Straits. And barely two weeks ago, a high-profile US delegation visited Taiwan conveying the US' "rock solid" commitment to the island's security.

And while Biden may be applauded for the straightforward way he hit the nail on the head, he cannot deny that since he took office, the US has breathed fresh life into the previously moribund Quad mechanism, established the new AUKUS Asia-Pacific security alliance with Australia and the United Kingdom, blocked the European Union approving a hard-won bilateral investment treaty with China, and painstakingly tried to sow seeds of discord between China and its neighbors.

At the same time, the US has never ceased interfering with China's internal affairs in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Xinjiang, and has groundlessly blacklisted dozens of Chinese enterprises, institutes and individuals, while coercing other countries to exclude Chinese entities.

China is therefore not only listening to what the United States says, but more importantly watching what it does.

As Xi stressed, the challenges China-US relations face originate from the fact that the US side has not followed through on his and Biden's shared understanding that China and the US need to respect each other, coexist in peace and avoid confrontation, and that the two sides should increase communication and dialogue at all levels and in all fields.

Until Washington adopts an objective and rational view of China and stops misinterpreting and misjudging China's strategic intentions, what should be valuable direct communication between the two leaders will be worthless.

Now is the time for the US side to prove Biden's latest reiteration of his administration's stance on the development of China-US relations does not ring hollow again.

Teams have been tasked with following up on the substantive and detailed conversation the two leaders had. It is to be hoped that tangible outcomes will be forthcoming in the days and weeks ahead to positively reorient bilateral relations.