A senior Chinese official told Asian political and business leaders Saturday that Beijing wants peaceful economic ties with its neighbors and isn't a threat. "There is neither reason nor possibility for us to threaten anyone," Jia Qinglin, one of nine members of the Communist Party's ruling Standing Committee, said in a speech at the Boao Forum for Asia. His comments were reported by the official Xinhua News Agency. Other leaders at the conference included Prime Ministers John Howard of Australia and Abdullah Ahmad Badawi of Malaysia. "We will stay on the path of peaceful development, devoting all our resources to development," Jia was quoted as saying. "Even if China gets more developed in the future, it will never seek hegemony."
