BEIJING: Wang Yi, China’s State Councilor and Foreign Minister, said that the world must lift various unilateral sanctions on war-torn Afghanistan in the shortest possible time. It’s the right time to end sanctions on Afghanistan to boost the economy, the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement, citing Wang at the virtual G20 foreign ministers meeting on Afghanistan on Wednesday. He further maintained that all the foreign exchange reserves of Afghanistan belong to its people because they are national assets and should not be used by foreign powers as a bargaining chip to put pressure on Afghanistan. Earlier last month, China had asserted that it has no problem in accepting the Taliban regime and is willing to maintain friendly relations with them if they uphold basic human rights. “China respects the right of the Afghan people to independently determine their destiny and is willing to continue to develop… friendly and cooperative relations with Afghanistan,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters.