William Cohen: US, China economies directly linked

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-03-20 21:05

BEIJING - Former US Secretary of Defense William Cohen said here Friday that the economies of the United States and China had become directly linked.

"These are very critical moments in our two nations' lives, because we are at a point that we have not been in almost since 1929," Cohen said in a speech at the China National School of Administration.

Cohen attributed the problems of the US economic system to "a lack of discipline, a lack of oversight, a lack of transparency, a lack of accountability, responsibility and integrity.

"Right now, it seems one of the biggest problems we have is fear," he said. "President Barack Obama's major goal in the coming weeks is to rebuild the sense of confidence, because people are lacking in confidence in our system, in our banking system and political system."

Speaking of bilateral cooperation in addressing the financial crisis, he said China and the United States should resolve differences and look at issues that affect both, such as economic growth and stimulating their economies.

Cohen said the notion of a zero-sum game no longer applied in a globalized world.

China holds US$1.7 trillion of US debt and nearly US$2 trillion in foreign reserves, said Cohen, emphasizing that if the United States was not healthy, China would not be, either.

"We have to cross the river in the same boat," he said. "We can see each other as partners, or as friendly competitors, and hopefully not adversaries."

Cohen served as Secretary of Defense from 1997 to 2001. After leaving the Pentagon in 2001, he founded a business consulting firm called The Cohen Group with three Pentagon officials.