WASHINGTON: As the world’s largest official bilateral creditor, China should participate in meaningful debt relief for countries in debt distress, but it has served for too long as a “roadblock” to necessary action, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a major speech on US-China relations on Thursday.

Yellen said the United States expected China to make good its pledge to work constructively on issues such as debt relief and climate change, noting that delays raised costs for both borrowers and creditors.

Yellen calls for ‘constructive and fair’ US economic ties with China

Speaking at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies, Yellen welcomed China’s provision of financing assurances for Sri Lanka, but said Washington continued to urge China’s “full participation” in providing debt treatments for Zambia, Ghana and other countries.