China Accuses US Of Creating "Imaginary Enemy" During High-level Talks

"The United States wants to reignite the sense of national purpose by establishing China as an 'imaginary enemy'," state television quoted Vice Foreign Minister Xie Feng.

A top Chinese diplomat took a confrontational tone on Monday in rare high-level talks with the United States, accusing it of creating an "imaginary enemy" to divert attention from domestic problems and suppress China. Amid worsening relations between the world's two largest economies, Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, the second-ranked US diplomat, arrived on Sunday for the face-to-face meetings in the northern city of Tianjin. "The United States wants to reignite the sense of national purpose by establishing China as an 'imaginary enemy'," state television quoted Vice Foreign Minister Xie Feng as saying in a report on Monday morning's session, even as talks were underway. The United States had mobilised its goverment and society to suppress China, he added.