Xu Xueyuan, Chargé d'affaires ad interim of the Chinese embassy in the United States: Sino-US relations should not be driven by "wandering balloons"

　　China News Service, February 18th. According to the Chinese Embassy in the United States, on February 17 local time, Xu Xueyuan, the charge d'affaires ad interim of the Chinese Embassy in the United States, published an article entitled "Sino-US relations should not be caused by "vagrant balloons" in the "Washington Post" of the United States. A signed article of "Follow the Wind".

The full translation is as follows:

　　Recently, the United States' disposal of a Chinese civilian unmanned airship "stray balloon" has brought new challenges to Sino-US relations and is also testing whether the two sides can properly handle unexpected emergencies.

　　This civilian unmanned airship is used for meteorological scientific research. Due to the influence of the westerly wind and its limited control ability, it strayed into the U.S. airspace. The facts are very clear.

The Chinese side notified the U.S. side as soon as possible after careful inspection, and asked the U.S. side to handle it properly in a calm, professional, and low-key manner.

However, the U.S. disregarded the facts, publicly smeared the Chinese civilian airship as a "Chinese People's Liberation Army spy balloon," and shot it down with excessive force when the airship did not pose a real threat to U.S. security.

The U.S. has also intensified its hype that China has a "high-altitude balloon reconnaissance program" targeting countries around the world, and illegally sanctioned six Chinese companies and institutions.

The US side overreacted and took advantage of the situation to complicate and magnify the situation, making an isolated incident add new wounds to Sino-US relations.

　　The Sino-US relationship is the most important and complex bilateral relationship in the world. Its history has never been smooth sailing, but it has developed in the process of constantly emerging and overcoming difficulties.

Many problems between China and the United States stem from strategic misunderstandings and misjudgments. The unfortunate accident that the airship strayed into the US territory turned into the current situation is the latest example.

It is not terrible to have problems, the key is whether you have the sincerity and ability to properly handle the problems.

Sino-US relations need to be managed "whole process" and must be realized with an eye to the overall situation.

What is the big picture of Sino-US relations?

That is the basic fact that the common interests of the two countries far outweigh the differences, and the important truth that a healthy and stable Sino-US relationship is in line with the fundamental interests of the two countries and the people of the world.

When Sino-US relations are in difficulties, we must have the courage and wisdom to respect facts and return to rationality.

Any emotional and politicized move will inevitably lead to backlash and hurt oneself while harming the other party.

If China and the United States can properly resolve the balloon incident, it will show to the people of the two countries and the international community that China and the United States can manage differences and avoid confrontation with a responsible attitude of mutual respect.

　　China has always advocated strengthening exchanges and dialogue between China and the United States at all levels. This is also an important consensus reached at the Bali meeting between the two heads of state, and both sides have the responsibility to implement it.

The experience of the past boils down to one thing, that is, China and the United States benefit from cooperation, and lose from confrontation.

It is hoped that the U.S. will meet China in the same direction, not allow a "vagrant balloon" to bias Sino-U.S. relations, and take concrete measures to prevent the situation from continuing to develop in the wrong direction, and push Sino-U.S. relations back to the track of healthy and stable development.