Cooperate to solve economic and trade disputes

By Zhong Sheng, People’s Daily

Chinese President Xi Jinping praised the important progress made in the new round of China-U.S. high-level economic and trade consultations in his meeting with US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Feb.15.

It was the first time in months that the Chinese President met members of the US team who came to China for trade and economic talks. The meeting proved that the early-stage trade and economic talks have made positive results. It also pointed direction and injected new impetus to the development of bilateral economic and trade relations in the next stage.

Cooperation is the best choice for both sides and there are principles for cooperation. In retrospect of the China-US trade talks, the head-of-state diplomacy has always set the tone for the negotiations.

On Dec. 1, 2018, President Xi met with his US counterpart President Donald Trump in Argentina. In less than a month, the two heads of state held a phone conversation. The important consensus reached between them to push for mutually beneficial and win-win agreement that benefits the world is driving the two countries to solve disputes step by step.

The outcomes of the just-concluded high-level economic and trade talks once again proved that cooperation would lead the two countries forward. Guided by the consensus reached between the two heads of state, as well as the spirit of mutual respect and win-win cooperation, both teams worked actively to maximize common interests, reached consensus in principle on major issues, held specific discussions about a memorandum of understanding on bilateral economic and trade issues, and had in-depth communication on topics of common concern including implementation mechanism, moving forward in solving the disputes.

Such outcomes conform to the common expectation of both sides and that of the international community.

China and the US are inseparable, and cooperation creates win-win results while confrontation leads to lose-lose scenarios. A China-US relationship based on coordination, cooperation and stability serves the fundamental interest of the two peoples.

Days ago, seventeen American former politicians and renowned experts on Chinese studies released a report in Washington D.C., calling on the federal government to find solutions to disputes through dialogue and consultation and stressing that China-US hostility harms the interests of both sides.

Former US Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin said that the US and China must recognize their common interests in a constructive relationship and take responsive actions, for the current economic interests and for the future of mankind.

China has been deepening reforms and expanding opening-up in planned steps, delivering multiple favored policies to foreign enterprises.

A series of eye-catching figures have showcased the vitality of the Chinese market. In 2018, the total import and export volume of goods exceeded 30 trillion yuan. In January 2019, the total import and export volume of trade in goods increased by 8.7 percent year on year. During the Spring Festival holiday, China’s catering and retail sectors’ income hit one trillion yuan, and the network transactions of China Union Pay exceeded one trillion yuan.

All these have injected confidence into the world to work for common development with China. The international community has witnessed that China is always sharing its development opportunities with people of countries around the world, including the US.

Stable profits are created as long as we look at the bigger picture. Economic and trade cooperation is carried out under the bigger framework and the guidance of the major tone. The only choice bearing positive significance for the two sides is to seek common ground while putting aside differences, take a long-term perspective and push for cooperation.

The two rounds of trade and economic talks held two weeks apart both made important progress, based on which, the Chinese and US teams will continue the talks in Washington soon. We hope the two sides maintain the good momentum for negotiations and strive for consensus within the timetable set by the two heads of state, so as to promote long-term and stable development of China-US trade relations and benefit the two peoples and people around the world.