Forming “cliques“ targeting China ’doomed to fail’ - Spokesperson on Quad meeting

Bloomberg: President Joe Biden will host the leaders of Australia, India and Japan at the White House next week for discussions that will include countering China’s expanding influence in the Asia-Pacific region. Does the ministry have a comment on this meeting of the Quad? Zhao Lijian: It is China’s consistent belief that any regional cooperation mechanism should follow the trend of peace and development, and help promote mutual trust and cooperation among regional countries rather than target a third party or undermine its interests. Forming closed and exclusive “cliques“ targeting other countries runs counter to the trend of the times and deviates from the expectation of regional countries. It thus wins no support and is doomed to fail. I want to stress that China is not only a major engine of economic growth in the Asia-Pacific, but also a staunch defender of regional peace and stability. China’s development is a force for world peace and a boon for regional prosperity