Strategic talks will strengthen Sino-US ties China Daily Updated: 2005-08-02 06:17
Twenty-six years after they established diplomatic relations, China and the
United States held their first ever regular strategic dialogue in Beijing
yesterday. This is a positive and significant step towards building stable
Sino-US relations.
Chinese Vice-Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo and US Deputy Secretary of State
Robert B. Zoellick co-chaired the high-level talks, which reportedly focused on
common strategic matters such as anti-terrorism, economics, energy and foreign
policy.
During a whole day of closed-door discussions, the two sides exchanged views
in a candid and in-depth manner while reiterating that long-term, healthy and
stable development of Sino-US relations is in the interests of both sides. The
two sides also agreed to hold the second strategic dialogue in the United States
months later.
Such a milestone event came about as a result of the consensus reached
between Chinese President Hu Jintao and his US counterpart George W. Bush at the
Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation Summit in Chile last year.
It demonstrates the determination and sincerity of the two countries to
establish an all-round communication mechanism in a bid to better deal with
their deepening, complex relationship.
Of course there are a growing number of disputes as well as close exchanges
and stronger co-operation between the two countries. Conflicts have emerged in
trade and misunderstanding and suspicion in fields such as foreign policy,
security and energy.
It is no surprise at all that the two powers the world's most developed
nation and the biggest developing country have both overlapping interests and
differences. A critical task facing both sides is establishing a platform to
manage differences and potential conflicts to reduce the risk of mutual
misunderstanding.
Regrettably, the absence of a regular communication mechanism in the past
left Sino-US relations to be directed by a passive crisis-addressing model
although both sides recognized the importance of solving their problems.
The start of a regular Sino-US strategic dialogue will surely offer both
countries an effective channel for promoting mutual understanding and trust, for
strengthening co-operation and appropriately addressing concerns.
Friendly dialogue between high-level officials seeing eye to eye will help
avoid unnecessary friction, dispel misgivings about strategy and contribute to
the development of stable and vigorous bilateral relations.
On the Chinese side, such a regular communication mechanism with the United
States meets the need for a peaceful environment for development.
Through strengthening com-munication between the most influential political
and economic forces in the Asia-Pacific region, Beijing can demonstrate to
Washington its determination to engage in peaceful development, while showing
China's core interests cannot be challenged.
The high-level strategic talks provide the United States with a platform to
accurately evaluate China's development and national strength. There will be
less scope for American decision-makers to rush into incorrect judgments of
China on the basis of the spurious "China threat."
A stable Sino-US relationship based on regular high-level dialogue is also
conducive to regional and international stability. The benefits have already
been reaped at the ongoing six-party talks on denuclearization of the Korean
Peninsula.
Of course, it is unrealistic to expect such a regular communication mechanism
to eradicate all of the differences between China and the United States, which
have different national conditions and core interests. In fact, there will never
be a once-and-for-all solution to such a complex relationship.
But as long as the two nations continue to build mutual trust through a
powerful communication mechanism, they will solve problems as they arise, which
will help develop truly stable relations.
(China Daily 08/02/2005 page4)
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