Chinese Premier Li Qiang Takes Dig At US, Warns Against Return To ‘Cold War Mentality’

China’s Premier of the State Council Li Qiang addresses the UN General Assembly. (Reuters)

Chinese Premier Li Qiang addressed the UN General Assembly on Friday, where he made a veiled criticism of the United States by warning against a return to “Cold War mentality”.

Without naming US President Donald Trump, Li defended multilateralism and projected China as a defender of the global order, of which Washington was the chief custodian until recently.

“The world has entered a new period of turbulence and transformation,” he said. “Unilateralism and (the) Cold War mentality are resurfacing. The international rules and order built over the past 80 years are under serious challenge, and the once effective international system is constantly disrupted.”

Li criticised the imposition of Trump’s tariffs on several countries, even though the US has reached a truce with China. “A major cause of the current global economic doldrums is the rise in unilateral and protectionist measures such as tariff hikes and the erection of walls and barriers,” he emphasised.

The Chinese Premier warned humanity was at a crossroads once again, asserting that China hopes to work with the rest of the world to uphold the ideals of the United Nations.

This came as the United States and its Pacific allies have long demanded that China accept the status quo and allow freedom of navigation in the strategic South China Sea, which Beijing claims in its entirety and has disputes with the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan.

This came days after the Chinese Foreign Ministry countered Trump’s scathing criticism against the United Nations, saying it played an “irreplaceable role” in safeguarding global peace and security.

“China always believes that in a world as turbulent as ours, it is all the more important to uphold and defend the authority of the UN”, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun at a media briefing here, responding to a question on Trump’s remarks castigating the UN as a feckless institution which failed to live up to its potential.

“China stands ready to work with other member states to renew the founding mission of the UN, reaffirm the commitment to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and revitalise the UN’s authority and vigour in the new era, so as to play a bigger role for safeguarding world peace, promoting common development and building a community with a shared future for humanity”, he said.

(with inputs from agencies)