China foreign minister says US ties 'disrupted'

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said on Sunday that relations with the United States had been "seriously disrupted", after a rise in friction between the two big powers.

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said on Sunday that relations with the United States had been "seriously disrupted", after a rise in friction between the two big powers.

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"The responsibility does not lie with China," said Yang, speaking at a news conference on the sidelines of the annual session of China's parliament.

Beijing and Washington have recently gone through a rough patch, with quarrels in January and February over Chinese Internet censorship, trade disputes, US. arms sales to Taiwan, and President Barack Obama's meeting with the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan leader.

The United States "must respect China's core interests" on Taiwan and Tibet, Yang added. "China has always attached importance to its relationship with the United States."