Like 'Husband and Wife', U.S. and China Must Tolerate One Another
(Global Times, China)
So what's it going to take for American and China to make a go
of it? According to this editorial from China's state-run Global Times, it will require the U.S. to stop acting as if
relations are threatened by failures to quickly resolve any one particular
issue, and patience, lots of patience.
Presidents Xi and Obama spent an extraordiary nine hours almost entirely alone together this weekend at the Annenberg Retreat at Sunnylands, in Rancho Mirage, California. The world has reason to hope that things went well.
At
their informal meeting Friday, President Xi Jinping
expressed confidence that China and the United States can avoid the historic
tendency of established and emerging powers to enter into conflict. President Obama,
for his part, welcomed China's peaceful rise.
That
may be the most encouraging statement ever made between an existing power and a
rising one. As Chinese, we know that President Xi leader was speaking from the
nation's heart, but we do not know whether Mr. Obama was expressing the genuine
feelings of Americans or just seeking to reassure his guest.
This
doubt reflects the long-term strategic suspicion between the two countries. We
often wonder if America's intentions are as friendly as its president says. On
the other hand, Americans may not believe China's declarations, either.
Cases
of friction between the two countries have greatly influenced public opinion on
both sides and abound in many areas. China-U.S. relations are more complicated
than ever.
It
should be said that Chinese care about individual issues as much as Americans
do. But we find it baffling when the United States raises issues like
cyber security to a level of importance that challenges strategic relations. Is this
just a hoax for the purposes of threatening China, or does the United States
really believe each one of these issues is more important than anything else?
Posted By Worldmeets.US
America's
leadership style changes as each opposing political party takes charge. For
every president, one issue or another may appear particularly urgent, and they seek
to demonstrate that practical handling of Sino-U.S. relations can yield quick
and tangible results.
For
our country's part, in instances where
the U.S. demands the impossible, it is unfair to think China doesn't want to resolve concrete issues. Some American demands are selfish. for instance, when
the U.S. refuses to concede an inch, while China is required to compromise its
national interests. Other issues, like intellectual property rights, are simply
too complicated to immediately resolve.
The
new relationship between the two powers should be based on restructuring the strategic
visions of both countries as well as their ways of dealing with particular
issues. It isn't going to be easy for either leader to avoid misinterpreting the
intentions of the other side.
These
new ties will require greater tolerance on both sides. China and the United
States must realize that even a husband and wife cannot avoid quarreling and must
nevertheless tolerate one other.
Although
the Sino-U.S. relations will experience ups and downs, we know dealing with a
major setback would be even more difficult, as that inhibit this historic
momentum.
