The FINANCIAL -- BEIJING. Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi has called for joint efforts to promote a return to better relations with the United States, Xinhua reported on March 8.

"The responsibility for the current difficulty in Sino-U.S. relations does not lie with China," Yang said.

He said that Chinese-U.S. ties "had a good start" when President Obama took office last year but, U.S. arms sales to Taiwan and U.S. leaders' meetings with the Dalai Lama "caused a serious disturbance to Chinese-U.S. ties."

"The moves undermined China's core interests and the overall interests of China-U.S. relations, and China is firmly opposed to these moves," he said.

He urged the United States to take seriously China's position and respect China's core interests and major concerns with credible steps.

"The United States should properly handle sensitive issues and work with the Chinese side to return the Chinese-U.S. relationship to the track of stable development," he said.

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