China: U.S. should lift sanctions before visit

China has urged the United States to abandon irrational suppression of Chinese companies and lift unilateral sanctions on them ahead of a possible visit by the U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, the Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday.

In recent years, the U.S. has placed a large number of Chinese enterprises on its blacklist and imposed various types of sanctions to suppress them, citing multiple pretexts like national security, human rights and issues related to the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, Iran and Russia, said Shu Jueting, spokeswoman of the ministry, at a news briefing.

"China is firmly opposed to this as it seriously damages the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises," Shu said.

In response to media inquiries about a possible visit by Raimondo, Shu said: "China is open to and welcomes Raimondo's willingness to visit the country, and communication with the U.S. in this regard is underway."

China will remain committed to addressing each other's concerns in the areas of economics and trade through dialogue and will promote constructive and pragmatic cooperation, Shu said.

Ending the U.S.' arbitrary suppression of Chinese companies and lifting unilateral sanctions on them can help inject positive energy into bilateral economic relations, she said.

Similar views were expressed by China's Ministry of Finance on Monday in response to media inquiries about an official visit by U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to Beijing last week. Yellen's visit was described as "candid and constructive" by both sides.

In the Finance Ministry's statement, China renewed its concerns over the U.S. sanctions, and urged the U.S. to scrap tariff increases on China, stop suppression of Chinese enterprises, treat two-way investments fairly, relax export controls, and lift the ban on products related to Xinjiang.

China also said the U.S. should take concrete steps in response to China's major concerns over bilateral economic relations.

The U.S. has long been abusing its financial hegemony and technological clout, and engaging in economic coercion in the name of protecting national security and human rights, said Xu Hongcai, deputy director of the economic policy committee at the China Association of Policy Science.

U.S. sanctions against Chinese entities and individuals only reveal its true attempt to stem the development of China's high-tech enterprises, Xu said.