China at UN warns against return to 'Cold War mentality'

UNITED NATIONS: Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Friday (Sep 26) warned against a return to a "Cold War mentality" and defended multilateralism and free trade, in a veiled criticism of the United States during an address to the United Nations General Assembly.

Li did not directly mention US President Donald Trump but cast China as a defender of the global order, long anchored by Washington.

"The world has entered a new period of turbulence and transformation," Li said. "Unilateralism and 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 DEFENDS MULTILATERALISM

Li added that humanity had "once again come to a crossroads."

He criticised the use of tariffs, a tool Trump has frequently used against Beijing and other countries, even though Washington and Beijing reached a fragile truce.

"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," Li said. "China has consistently opened its door wider to the world."

Li said China "hopes to work with the rest of the world to uphold the ideals of the UN."

SOUTH CHINA SEA DISPUTES

The United States and its Pacific allies have long demanded that China allow freedom of navigation in the strategic South China Sea, where Beijing has overlapping territorial claims.

The Trump administration, while still critical of China, has shifted away from defending international conventions and instead has emphasised raw US power.