Cui Tiankai, Chinese Ambassador to the United States, pointed out that China and the United States are the two largest economies in the world, and a trade war will only hurt both sides and may also affect the global economy.
Cui Tiankai also said in an interview with China-US Focus website reporter James Chau on the 18th of this month that China and the United States should find out the expanding common interests and build bilateral relations on the basis of these common interests.
The English version of the China-U.S. Focus website published the interview content the day before yesterday (24th), and the website of the Chinese Embassy in the United States released the Chinese translation of the transcript today.
The Chinese translation is as follows:
China-U.S. Focus: The establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States is a major decision made by China and the United States. It has changed the entire world and integrated the interests of more than 1 billion people around the world.Today, 40 years later, do you think the two countries and peoples have achieved what they originally envisioned?
Ambassador Cui: The answer is very clear, yes.The world and China and the United States are changing for the better, and both have benefited a lot from the 40 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States.Looking back at history, during the Cold War in the 1950s and 1960s, there were two hot wars in Asia, but since China and the United States reopened the door to each other, Dr. Kissinger and President Nixon visited China one after another, especially after the normalization of Sino-US relations, the Asia-Pacific region generally maintained peace and stability.Although there are still some hotspot issues in the region, such as the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, they are all under effective control, and we are working together to continue to properly handle them.From an economic perspective, the Asia-Pacific region is now very different from 40 years ago, and has become one of the main driving forces for global economic growth.Frankly speaking, both China and the United States have played a huge role in this.We are grateful to the older generation of leaders, including President Carter and Mr. Deng Xiaoping, who made historic decisions with extraordinary courage and foresight.
China-U.S. Focus: A few weeks after New Year's Day in 1979, Mr. Deng Xiaoping visited the United States.Standing on the South Lawn of the White House, he said: The world is not yet peaceful, peace is still facing threats, and the factors that cause war are also increasing significantly.But there has been no world war since 1979, and not a single American soldier has died on the battlefield in East Asia.Do you think China-US relations have made a direct contribution to peace?
Ambassador Cui: Of course, especially in the Asia-Pacific region.It was difficult to imagine that overall peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region could be achieved 40 years ago, but it is now a reality.But sometimes people easily forget that peace is hard-won and take it for granted.
China-U.S. Focus: When Deng Xiaoping visited the United States that year, he visited the Johnson Space Center and experienced the lunar lander and aerospace simulator.At that time, most people in China were still living in poverty.Not long ago, China became the first country in the world to explore the far side of the moon.As technology advances and innovation becomes a part of contemporary China, how do you think China can better benefit mankind through technological innovation?
Ambassador Cui: Benefiting mankind is the purpose of China's development of science and technology.Our goal is to bring a better life to the Chinese people, and we are also willing to make more contributions to the progress of the entire human race, including the progress in the field of science and technology.In fact, in the field of science and technology, the United States is still the leading country in the world, and China still needs to learn from the United States and other countries.What we want is not to replace other countries, but to benefit mankind more through cooperation.
China-US Focus: But many people are very concerned about these innovations. When they see the photos of the far side of the moon, they think it is a threat. Many people do.They will say that this technology is being used by China to strengthen itself rather than benefit its people.You were born in China and represent China. What do you think can be done to let the world know the real China instead of the China in some people’s impressions?
Ambassador Cui: The 1.4 billion Chinese people, including Chinese scientists, are making unremitting efforts to realize national modernization and the two centenary goals.No one in China intends to invade other countries, or to carry out so-called regime change in other countries, or to impose our political system and ideology on others.China has no such plan and no one will do such a thing.
China-U.S. Focus: So, do they assume that China may be planning to do these things out of inner fear?
Ambassador Cui: If you look back at the history of the past half century or after the end of World War II, you will clearly see which countries invaded other countries, which countries engaged in regime change all over the world, and which countries wholeheartedly pursued peace and development during most of the period.I think the facts are very clear.
China-U.S. Focus: For the world, the period from the end of 1978 to the beginning of 1979 was of milestone significance, although many people did not realize this.On January 1, 1979, the two great countries decided to become true friends and work together for the future.A few weeks ago, Mr. Deng Xiaoping launched the reform and opening up process in China, which profoundly changed the lives of many people.Recently, you have said that the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States and reform and opening up are closely related. Changes in China's domestic policies also mean opening up to the outside world, including changes in foreign policy.Does China have experience that it can share with other countries?
Ambassador Cui: In fact, after the end of the Cultural Revolution, Deng Xiaoping came back and proposed to emancipate the mind and seek truth from facts. China began a historic reform process.China reassessed the international situation and concluded that a world war would not be fought for a long time.Therefore, China must concentrate on economic development and modernization.This is the original intention of our implementation of reform and opening up.We know that this goal cannot be achieved in isolation. China must establish stronger and closer relations with neighboring countries and world powers including the United States.
Looking at Mr. Deng Xiaoping's diplomatic schedule in those few months, he visited Japan, Singapore, Malaysia and other neighboring countries on the eve of the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the start of reform and opening up.At the same time, negotiations on the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States are also underway.The communiqué on the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States was published two days before the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee.Shortly thereafter, in late January 1979, Deng Xiaoping paid an unusually long nine-day visit to the United States.This visit has achieved fruitful results and is of historic significance.
If China has a so-called grand strategy, then this grand strategy is to start the modernization process, concentrate on economic construction, promote world peace and stability, and develop new relations with the United States and other countries.
China-US Focus: You mentioned Mr. Deng Xiaoping's nine-day visit to the United States.I met with President Carter this morning. He said that after sending Deng an invitation to visit the United States, he received a positive reply within 24 hours.I think what he was trying to say was that it showed that Deng made a decisive decision to visit the United States at that time.I know you remember Mr. Deng Xiaoping visited the Johnson Space Center and the White House and donned a cowboy hat in Texas.His visit attracted great attention because he was the first Chinese leader Americans met in their own country.You were an ordinary person in Shanghai at the time. What do you think of Deng Xiaoping's visit to the United States and its impact on young Chinese at that time?
Ambassador Cui: It has a great impact.One of them is that it provided new opportunities for young Chinese at that time, including the opportunity to study and work in the United States.Every time I meet President Carter, he will tell us that story. He received a call in the middle of the night from a scientific adviser who was visiting Beijing and learned that Deng Xiaoping wanted to send Chinese students to study in the United States. Carter immediately expressed his welcome.This was one of the decisions made by the older generation of leaders at the time, and I personally benefited from it, which gave me the opportunity to come to the United States for graduate study a few years later.Without Deng Xiaoping's visit to the United States, and without his joint decision with President Carter to open the door for Chinese and American students, I would not have had the opportunity to study in the United States.
China-US Focus: You started your career very well. You once worked for the United Nations and represented China in dealing with the international community.What does globalization mean to you?
Ambassador Cui: In my opinion, globalization has become a part of real life.In today's world, due to the development of science and technology, people are more closely connected, no matter they are in the United States, China or Africa, they can communicate at any time.The flow of information is more frequent and robust than ever before.The flow of people, goods, services, etc., almost everything is globalizing, mainly driven by economic interests and thanks to technological progress and development.We cannot reverse the trend of globalization, but at the same time we must seriously study how to achieve globalizationHow to share the dividends of globalization fairly and promote an inclusive, open and reciprocal globalization process.I think this is the real challenge that the international community has faced over the past few years.
China-U.S. Focus: Muhammad Yunus, the pioneer of microfinance, said that China’s development has learned from the successes of traditional big countries, but it does not want to repeat their failures, that is, the huge gap between the rich and the poor has led tosocial injustice.What are the solutions to these problems and what is China’s opinion?The reason why I ask the Chinese side is because China has found an effective way to get rid of poverty.If China can lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, the same approach can work elsewhere.As we enter the next stage of development, what solutions does China have to solve the unfair and unfair problems caused by poverty, unemployment, schooling and other issues?How to solve the problem of social disparity?
Ambassador Cui: I think it's critical to ensure that people have access to opportunities.If children from poor families can receive a good education, they can change their lives and make greater contributions to society.Of course, for those vulnerable groups, such as the disabled and the elderly, our responsibility, especially the government's, is to take good care of them and take measures to properly consider their needs, so that the dividends of globalization and technological progress can be shared more equitably.
China-U.S. Focus: You mentioned technological progress and human society’s dependence on technology, and how technology promotes a new type of globalization.You also mentioned that Mr. Deng Xiaoping proposed seeking truth from facts.So, the rapid development of technology, the endless emergence of fake news, the rapid spread of information and the difficulty of effective control, have these made the truth complicated and difficult to discern?
Ambassador Cui: Yes.In the information age, learn to act responsibly because everyone is free to receive and send information and influence others.From time to time, some fake news appears in society, making it difficult to distinguish the truth from the false.In this regard, the government, relevant institutions and society as a whole must formulate rules, or codes of conduct, to standardize the behavior of people in the information age and encourage them to act responsibly.
US-China Focus: Conduct yourself in a dignified and respectful manner.I want to go back to the topic of Sino-US relations. We just talked about Sino-US relations, and then we switched to global issues.President Carter once praised China and the United States for effectively safeguarding world peace and promoting world economic growth and prosperity. At the same time, he also believed that the relationship between the two countries was in a dangerous situation. If misunderstandings and misjudgments are allowed to continue, the two countries may move towards a new Cold War.Do you agree with this statement?
Ambassador Cui: I think there are indeed some people who intend to provoke a new cold war between China and the United States, and we must remain vigilant about this.At the same time, the common interests between China and the United States are obviously very extensive.If we can truly focus on the huge common interests and mutual needs between the two countries, the choice will be very clear, which is to cooperate rather than engage in a new Cold War.
China-U.S. Focus: An important issue in China-U.S. relations last year was the trade war.I don’t want to just talk about the trade war itself, because it’s just a fragment. I want to explore the thinking behind it.Do you think the trade war will permanently change the Sino-US relations that have developed over the past 40 years?Will China seek other partners or expand its existing set of partnerships?
Ambassador Cui: China and the United States are the two largest economies in the world. A trade war will only hurt both sides and bring disaster to the world.The impact of the trade war has been felt in both countries and even around the world, which is why there are widespread concerns from all walks of life about the continued trade friction between China and the United States without a solution.We need to speed up our work and find pragmatic, effective and mutually beneficial solutions through consultation as soon as possible.Of course, after existing problems are solved, new ones will arise, but we always handle relevant issues in the spirit of mutual respect and mutual benefit.
China-U.S. Focus: You are a senior senior diplomat who is very insightful and creative. You have traveled around the world and been exposed to various viewpoints.What do you wish Americans could understand about China and its people?
Ambassador Cui: I hope the American people can better understand the real China, rather than the China reported by some American media or described by some so-called strategists. That is not the real China.To be honest, some people are trying to demonize China, and the image of China they paint and impose on the American people is not consistent with reality.One of my job responsibilities is to deepen the mutual understanding between the two countries.
China-US Focus: If someone wants to get to know China and learn about China's development process, what would you suggest they do?What to do first?
Ambassador Cui: There are many good books to read.If they are interested in history, it will definitely help to read Chinese history first.Of course, if they can go to China for a walk and have a look, the effect will be even better.I always believe that seeing is believing. If you want to understand China, the most effective way is to go to China in person to see what the Chinese people are doing every day, what their aspirations are, and what are China’s development goals?This is not difficult, just observe what is happening in China, talk to Chinese people, listen to what they say, and look at the Chinese stories that are happening. I believe many misunderstandings will disappear.
China-US Focus: China and the United States are very different in some aspects, such as language, culture, history, governance system and so on.Do you think that one day in the future the United States will say that the gap between the second largest economy and ours is not big anymore, and we can make some space for the two countries to jointly lead the world.Do you think this is possible?
Ambassador Cui: The Chinese people have the right to pursue a better life, and this right is inalienable.Whether others are happy or not, China will stick to the path of peaceful development, and the Chinese people will continue to work hard for a better life.At the same time, China's development will not be at the expense of the interests of other countries. On the contrary, China's development will make greater contributions to global economic growth and world peace and stability.For example, starting from 2019, China will become the second largest contributor of UN membership fees and peacekeeping costs. Although the United States is still the largest contributor, China's contribution is still increasing, and we will assume more international responsibilities.
At the same time, I don't think China and the US will ever be the same country.Why do all countries in the world have to be the same?Such a world would be extremely dull and uninteresting.We should respect and make full use of the diversity of the world.China's unique culture, long history and distinctive language make it attractive to many Americans.Of course, for many Chinese, the United States is also very desirable.Only in this way can the people of the two countries deepen mutual understanding, and thus lead to a stronger friendly relationship between the two countries, which is beneficial to everyone.
China-US Focus: Before ending our conversation, I would like to bring the topic back to the two architects of Sino-US relations.You have said many times that people should not ignore the original intention of establishing diplomatic relations between China and the United States. The establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States is to promote world peace. The development of China-US relations has indeed directly contributed to world peace to a considerable extent.On Google, you can find related photos of Mr. Deng Xiaoping shaking hands and hugging President Carter.Yesterday you also heard President Carter say that China-US relations and the two peoples should build a new partnership based on mutual respect and even friendship.Is this possible?
Ambassador Cui: Most of the time, international relations are based on common interests, and so is Sino-US relations.Of course, it would be great if people from different countries could love each other, but we cannot expect everyone to do the same.For the two great countries, China and the United States, the two sides should continue to expand common interests and build bilateral relations on the basis of common interests.
