Head-of-state diplomacy can continue to chart stabilizing course for Sino-US ties: China Daily editorial

The upcoming visit by US President Donald Trump, scheduled from Wednesday to Friday, will be the first to China by a US president in nine years. Such top-level face-to-face exchanges are essential for the stable development of bilateral ties.

Over recent years, head-of-state diplomacy has played an irreplaceable role in guiding the development of China-US relations. The multiple telephone conversations between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Trump, and their meeting in Busan, the Republic of Korea, in October last year provided strategic direction for the management of differences and the expansion of cooperation.

Under the guidance of head-of-state diplomacy, the two sides have carried out six rounds of economic and trade consultations since May 2025 — in Geneva, London, Stockholm, Madrid, Kuala Lumpur and Paris — and are holding the seventh round in Seoul from Tuesday to Wednesday immediately ahead of the summit meeting.

The frequency of the trade discussions reflects both sides' recognition that coordination on economic and trade issues between the world's two largest economies remains among the most important stabilizing factors in bilateral relations. Since economic and trade frictions escalated last year, maintaining close communication has become essential to prevent the broader relationship from being damaged by negative spillover effects.

It is noteworthy that the United States imposed sanctions on three Chinese companies on Friday, accusing them of "assisting Iran". China firmly opposes such illegal unilateral sanctions that lack a basis in international law and it will protect the companies' legitimate rights, as Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on Monday.

The top priority should be to make every effort to prevent the resumption of hostilities in the Middle East, rather than exploiting the conflict to smear or entangle other nations, Guo added.

China and the US have common interests in promoting early and proper resolutions of hotspot issues, which is in line with the world's expectations.

They also have common interests in making joint efforts to reduce trade and investment barriers to each other in some sectors, and exploring more stable and institutionalized frameworks for long-term cooperation.

Such endeavors could potentially pave the way for broader tariff suspensions, more confidence-building measures in some key fields and reciprocal reductions of restrictive policies, so as to help stabilize supply chains.

It should be borne in mind that pragmatic cooperation between China and the US has continued in other areas despite the existing differences between them. A joint counternarcotics operation carried out by related departments of the two sides in early April underscored the shared determination of both countries to combat drug-related crimes and safeguard public security through practical cooperation.

What matters is not that the two major countries have differences and their respective core concerns — that is only natural — but rather how they perceive and approach those differences, and how they show due concern to each other's core concerns. Among them, the Taiwan question is the most important and sensitive issue in China-US relations. The US should handle it with utmost prudence.

Stable China-US relations are not only in the interests of the two countries, but also vital to global peace, stability and development. The momentum with which the two sides maintain their exchanges and sustain their coordination on issues of common concern has sent a positive signal: dialogue and cooperation remain the mainstream aspiration on both sides of the Pacific.

As Guo said on Monday in reply to questions on Beijing's expectations for the upcoming visit by Trump, China stands ready to work with the US to expand cooperation and properly manage differences, based on the principles of equality, mutual respect and reciprocity.

Confrontation does not serve the interests of either side. Guided by a commitment to mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, China and the US can sustain their communication, expand the space for collaboration, and increase the areas where their interests converge.