Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attends a press conference on China’s foreign policy and foreign relations on the sidelines of the fourth session of the 14th National People’s Congress (NPC) on March 8, 2026 in Beijing, China.
Vcg | Visual China Group | Getty Images
BEIJING – China’s top diplomat Wang Yi underlined the benefits of interaction with the United States on Sunday and signaled that preparations were underway for a planned meeting between the two countries’ leaders amid disagreements over the Iran war and trade tariffs.
“The high-level exchange agenda is already on the table,” Wang told reporters in Mandarin Chinese, according to an official translation. “What both sides need to do now is to prepare thoroughly, create an appropriate environment, manage the existing risks and eliminate unnecessary disruptions.”
“Turning our backs on each other would only lead to mutual misjudgments and misjudgments,” he said. “Sliding into conflict or confrontation would only drag the entire world into the abyss.”
After meeting face-to-face in South Korea in the fall, Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump said they planned to visit each other’s countries.
Trump is scheduled to visit China from March 31 to April 2. This would be the first trip by a sitting US president to the country since 2017.
However, Beijing has yet to confirm the exact dates of a Trump visit. Wang also didn’t elaborate, but noted that high-level interactions between the US and Chinese presidents had “encouraged progress.” [an] important strategic protection for the improvement and further development of Sino-American relations.”
Some analysts have expressed doubts about whether the trip will go ahead as scheduled, particularly since it would likely come soon after the joint U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran that killed its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the U.S. capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
Wang did not name either person in his remarks to the press on Sunday morning, but reiterated Beijing’s calls for a ceasefire in the Iran conflict.
“This is a war that should not have happened,” he said. “It is a war that does no one any good.”
According to official information, Wang has spoken by telephone with at least seven foreign ministers – including those of Russia, Iran and Israel – since the joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran began on February 28.
He spoke to reporters on Sunday on the sidelines of China’s eight-day annual parliamentary session, which is scheduled to end on Thursday. China’s top politicians, including President Xi Jinping, Prime Minister Li Qiang and Vice Premier He Lifeng, are meeting in Beijing with delegates from across the country.
Tariffs in question
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The bilateral talks came as the United States and China struck a fragile truce in October to cut tariffs on each other’s goods to below 50% for a year. The two countries previously increased tariffs to well over 100% during the height of tensions last spring.
Responding to a question about Trump’s portrayal of U.S.-China relations as a new “G2” for world leadership, Wang rejected the idea that two countries would do it alone, instead emphasizing multipolarity.
Without naming the United States, Wang warned against “establishing and enforcing tariff barriers.” [for] economic and technological decoupling.”
“This is no different than using kindling to put out a fire,” he said. “You’ll just get burned.”
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