China, US push forward relations along the right track

By Zhong Sheng

The substantial progress achieved by China and the US after a new round of high-level economic and trade consultations indicates that the willingness for reaching an agreement and for cooperation between the two countries is on the rise.

Under the guidance of the important consensus reached between the heads of state of the two countries, the negotiation teams of China and US conducted candid, efficient and constructive discussions on economic and trade issues of common concern from October 10 to 11 in Washington D.C.

The two sides made substantial progress in such areas as agriculture, intellectual property rights protection, exchange rate, financial services, expansion of trade cooperation, technology transfer and dispute settlement.

They also discussed arrangements for future consultations and agreed to work together towards a final agreement.

A healthy and steady China-US relationship serves the interests of both countries and the world at large, Chinese Vice Premier Liu He conveyed Chinese President Xi Jinping’s message to US President Donald Trump.

The Chinese president said he hopes that the two sides will work together to advance China-US relations based on coordination, cooperation and stability, manage differences on the basis of mutual respect, and expand cooperation for mutual benefit, so as to bring their relations forward along the right track.

For his part, Trump asked Liu to convey his cordial greeting to Xi, and said that he is pleased to see that the US-China trade negotiations have yielded "substantial phase one" progress, which is a great thing for both nations and the world at large.

Properly handling the China-US trade relationship is good for China, for the US, and also for peace and prosperity of the world, noted the Chinese vice premier, who is also chief of the Chinese side of the China-US comprehensive economic dialogue. Liu’s proposition gained the endorsement of the US side during the trade talks.

           

The world is waiting to see whether China and the US can make unremitting efforts to realize such consensus.

Economic and trade issues between China and the US were gradually accumulated in the past decades. China should not be the only party to blame, nor can all the problems be resolved overnight through any single means.

As an ancient Chinese saying goes, a long journey can be covered only by taking one step at a time. Now that China and the US have agreed to move on step by step. This means both sides are trying to seek common ground while shelving differences and take constructive actions in a pragmatic and rational manner.

The uncertainty caused by China-US economic and trade frictions over the past year has added to the difficulty of the already sluggish world economy. After all, any serious strategic miscalculation between great powers could make conflict and confrontation a “self-fulfilling prophecy”.

The international community is looking forward to communication and expression of goodwill between China and the US, rather than roadblocks or escalation of frictions.

That is why the positive message from the latest round of China-US high-level economic and trade consultations has not only uplifted the market sentiment of the two countries, but also led to favorable changes of various indicators in the global market.

This emerging deal “would represent the biggest step by the two countries in 15 months to end a tariff tit-for-tat that has whipsawed financial markets and slowed global growth”, said Reuters.

The world is very much looking forward to the realization of the US’ public statement that “we are very close” to ending the trade war.

Only cooperation remains the right choice for China and the US, and only win-win results lead to a better future. In this regard, the two countries should make every effort to ensure that their bilateral relationship develops along the right track.

At this moment, the consensus reached between the two heads of state during their meetings in Argentina and Osaka is particularly important for the world.

In Buenos Aires, they agreed to expand cooperation based on reciprocity and mutual benefit and manage differences based on mutual respect, so as to jointly advance China-US relations with coordination, cooperation and stability as the defining features, and not to impose new additional tariffs, and instructed the economic teams of both sides to step up negotiations toward the removal of all additional tariffs and reach a concrete deal that is mutually beneficial and win-win.

More than half a year later, the two presidents said at the G20 Osaka Summit that China and the US would resume trade talks, and the US side promised not to add new tariffs on Chinese imports.

As an old Chinese saying goes, honoring a promise carries the weight of gold. China and the US should meet each other halfway and properly address each other’s concerns on the basis of equality and mutual respect in accordance with the principles and direction set by the two heads of state, so as to promote the sound and steady development of bilateral economic and trade relations and constantly improve the well-being of the people of the two countries and the world at large.

(Zhong Sheng is a pen name often used by People's Daily to express its views on foreign policy.)