Senior Chinese diplomat says China will keep opening up

At the United Nations last week, Trump repeated his accusation that China was responsible for the coronavirus pandemic. Wang also said China would take part in multilateral cooperation on coronavirus vaccine research for the world's benefit.

China will keep opening up its economy to the wider world and is committed to building an open global economy, the government's senior diplomat said on Monday.

China has expanded access for foreign investors, State Councillor Wang Yi said in a forum organised by China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It has taken steps such as shortening its Negative List which detail sectors and industries that are restricted or prohibited to foreign firms, he said. Wang also made repeated veiled attacks on the United States in his speech, without naming the country or President Donald Trump.

He contrasted China's pledges to uphold multilateralism with "some countries" which he said had turned the United Nations General Assembly into a "theatre for self-serving political shows and an arena to provoke conflict and confrontation and to divide the whole world". Relations between China and the United States are tense over a number of issues from trade to the situation in Hong Kong. At the United Nations last week, Trump repeated his accusation that China was responsible for the coronavirus pandemic.

Wang also said China would take part in multilateral cooperation on coronavirus vaccine research for the world's benefit. "China will contribute to the accessibility and affordability of vaccines in all developing countries," he said.