Xinhuanet Beijing February 22 ndTopic: News analysis: Looking at the future development of Sino-US relations from US Secretary of State Clinton’s visit to China.
Xinhua News Agency reporters Chang Lu, Hou Lijun and Sun Yi
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton ended her 40-hour trip to China on the 22nd. This is not only the fastest visit to China by the US Secretary of State after taking office, but also the first face-to-face communication between senior Obama administration officials and China leaders. Through this visit, it is revealed that some new changes will occur in the future development of Sino-US relations, which is of concern.
Developing Sino-US relations is even more important under the current situation.
During Clinton’s visit, China president Hu Jintao, the State Council Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and State Councilor Dai Bingguo met with her respectively, and Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi held talks with her. During the meeting, President Hu Jintao pointed out in particular that it is more important than ever to further deepen and develop Sino-US relations against the background of the current international financial crisis spreading and various global challenges becoming increasingly prominent.
During the visit, China and the United States conducted in-depth discussions on bilateral relations, the financial crisis, climate change and other issues, especially reached a consensus on the first meeting of the two heads of state at the G-20 financial summit in London, and determined that the foreign ministers of the two countries would make special arrangements for this matter. At the same time, China’s Ministry of National Defense also announced that China and the United States will hold the annual working meeting of the Ministry of National Defense from 27th to 28th of this month.
"Secretary Clinton’s visit shows that Sino-US relations have made a smooth start in the shortest time since the new US administration took office, avoiding the unsmooth, turbulent and frictional start of Sino-US relations when the previous two new US administrations took office." Tao Wenzhao, a researcher at the American Institute of China Academy of Social Sciences, said.
He said that during the talks, China and the United States both "affirmed Sino-US relations conceptually and macroscopically". For example, both sides recognized that the two countries have extensive common interests and can deepen cooperation in many fields; There will also be an agenda for Sino-US relations for some time to come, including military affairs, national defense and summit meetings.
Shi Yinhong, a professor at the School of International Studies at Renmin University of China, said: "There is no doubt that both China and the United States regard each other as pivotal economies in the world. From such a height, in view of the current global economic recession and financial crisis, both sides emphasize the need to cooperate to meet the challenges in all aspects of the world’s political economy. This message is particularly clear."
Shi Yinhong believes that during Secretary Clinton’s visit, the two sides did not put the controversial issues in the past in a prominent position, but mainly discussed cooperation.
"After the outbreak of the financial crisis, the United States, which was hit hard by the economic recession and the financial crisis, increased its demand for China in the fields of finance and market, and it also needed to cooperate with China in the diplomatic field. At the same time, for China, if the US economy continues to decline, China’s economy will also be affected. Therefore, China and the United States need to help each other in the same boat. " Shi Yinhong said.
Experts pointed out that coping with the financial crisis provided an opportunity for China and the United States to strengthen mutual trust and cooperation. During Secretary Clinton’s visit to China, China and the United States agreed to further strengthen communication and coordination in dealing with the international financial crisis and jointly promote the positive results of the G-20 financial summit in London.
Expand the strategic dialogue mechanism
Before the visit, the question of how the Sino-US strategic dialogue mechanism, which has attracted much attention, will continue to be presented in bilateral relations was answered during this visit.
Both Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and Secretary Clinton said that the two countries have reached an agreement in principle on establishing a "China-US strategic and economic dialogue mechanism". This is believed to promote the two countries to continue to strengthen dialogue on strategic, overall and long-term issues in the political, diplomatic and economic fields.
"Raising the level of China-US strategic dialogue is what both governments want to see. Both sides have met their own needs to some extent. China hopes to stabilize Sino-US relations through the institutionalized dialogue mechanism between the leaders of the two countries; The United States can link political and economic issues in Sino-US relations by raising the level of dialogue. " Yan Xuetong, director of the Tsinghua University Center for International Relations Studies, said.
At present, there are more than 60 dialogue and consultation mechanisms between China and the United States, covering political, economic, defense and other fields. Among them, strategic dialogue and strategic economic dialogue are two important mechanisms for bilateral exchanges. Through these mechanisms, China and the United States have achieved many achievements in the fields of financial services, product quality and food safety, energy and environmental protection, and played an important role in promoting Sino-US economic and trade cooperation and the development of bilateral relations.
In addition to "strategy", "economy" has also become one of the key words of the new Sino-US dialogue mechanism. Zhufeng, a professor at the Peking University Institute of International Relations, believes that this is an important result of the replacement of "American diplomatic keywords" after President Obama took office. Coping with the global financial crisis is a common task for the two countries at present, and the Obama administration regards economic security as the core agenda of the whole national policy at present, so it shows that China and the United States are discussing economic issues more.
The current global financial crisis has affected both China and the United States. With the continuous development of the financial crisis, the number of bankruptcies in the United States has increased significantly. According to statistics, there were 25 bankruptcies in the United States last year, exceeding the sum of the previous five years. Since the beginning of this year, the number of banks that failed in the first two months in the United States has risen to 14.
As Premier Wen Jiabao said in his meeting with Secretary Clinton, the continuous enrichment of the connotation of constructive and cooperative relations between China and the United States is conducive to enhancing the strength and confidence of the international community in overcoming challenges and creating a better future together.
"Updating this dialogue mechanism shows that the United States not only pays attention to China’s economic field, but also integrates Sino-US strategic relations more closely and emphasizes the strategic significance of Sino-US cooperation." Zhufeng said.
Regarding the impact of the new mechanism on future Sino-US relations, he said that this mechanism will increase the opportunities for the heads of the two countries to meet regularly and resolve contradictions and frictions, and will play a positive role in the stable development of Sino-US relations.
Cooperation in the fields of energy and environmental protection is "heavier"
The dialogue in the fields of energy and environmental protection is a highlight of Clinton’s trip to China. She was accompanied by todd stern, the new special envoy on climate change who advocated cooperative emission reduction. During her stay in Beijing, she visited the Sun Palace gas-fired thermal power plant, and exchanged views with teachers and students in Tsinghua University on issues such as clean energy and climate change. She also quoted the old saying of China, "Dig a well without thirst", and emphasized the urgency of cooperation between the two countries.
Experts pointed out that the Obama administration has set targets in reducing its dependence on fossil fuels and greenhouse gas emissions, and establishing a "green partnership" with China will enable the United States to transfer technology and other technical assistance, which will bring long-term benefits to global energy and environment.
In fact, President Obama has attached great importance to new energy and climate change since he took office, and has taken a series of positive actions on climate change. In addition to appointing Steven Chu, a scientist who studies new energy, as the US Secretary of Energy, he has repeatedly stated that he wants to develop new energy, increase green energy and environmental protection energy, and increase the proportion of solar energy, wind energy, hydropower, geothermal energy and bioenergy in the energy consumption of the United States.
During her visit, Secretary Clinton repeatedly affirmed the policy focus of the new U.S. administration, and expressed her hope to make joint efforts with China to promote the use of cleaner energy, improve energy efficiency, transfer technology beneficial to both countries, and jointly develop and popularize clean energy technologies. These technologies are very important for sustainable economic development and curbing global problems caused by climate change.
Talking about future cooperation, Zhang Haibin, director of the Research Center for International Organizations in Peking University and an expert in environmental diplomacy, believes that China and the United States have opportunities to cooperate in improving energy efficiency and jointly developing clean coal technologies and new energy sources. The experience of the United States in related research and management is also worth learning from China. Yan Xuetong, on the other hand, pointed out that there is great potential for technical cooperation between China and the United States, and cooperation in the fields of climate change and clean energy may mainly focus on joint technological development.
Looking forward to the future development of Sino-US relations, experts expressed optimism. Tao Wenzhao said: "Secretary Clinton’s trip to Asia laid the foundation for future cooperation between the Obama administration and major Asian countries, and also outlined a new blueprint for the future development of Sino-US relations."
Editor: Zhao Deli
