The on-going complicated China-US relationsnot only make the Chinese and American peoples worried, but also the whole world. The two countries, whatever, are the two top largest economies in the world, with combined GDP accounting for 42% of the world’s total. What is more, they are also the two main engines of the global economy (China and the United States contribute 30% and 21% respectively to global economic growth). In addition to these, both China and the United States have world-level strongest military powers and nuclear weapons. If either side has to push the button lunching nuclear weapons in future, it would be a disaster for this world and the human being.
The structural contradictions, conflicts of fundamental interests, and differences in cultural backgrounds and values between China and the United States make them almost impossible to become either friends, partners, or alliances. However, the roles of China and the United States in international issues and global governance, their close economic and trade ties, the interlinkages of their industrial chains, and their market volumes decide they must become some kinds of partners, and the two countries could not finally become the enemy or adversary relationship as that between US-Soviet Union in the cold-war period. Therefore, China and the United States must explore a new relationship, that can live in peace and by clear rules.
In view of the above-mentioned status of China and the United States and the characteristics of bilateral relations, this relationship could be named as co-worker, according to Mr. Wang Xin, Founding President of Charigo Center for International Economic Cooperation (CIEC), who put forward this idea at his keynote speech at recent webinar held by the American Studies Institute of the Chinese Academy of social sciences on June 11, 2021.
It seems to Mr. Wang Xin, this co-worker relationship would be a kind of working relationship to work together for a common goal, namely international peace and well maintenance of the earth, the common home of the whole human being, although there will be tremandous contradictions, differences, frictions and disputes between the two countries. This is the duty of China and US, the two internationally biggest countries either in economy, politics, and miliatary power.
Now it seems that this "co-worker" relationship is perhaps too optimistic, but Xin thinks, the future world development and two countries domestic changes will lead them to do so, and some day in the future the two countries will sit down for calm, rational talks from a more objective prospective, and will find this new bilateral relationship acceptable.
He said that the Biden described will-be China-US relationship is a combination of "cooperation, competition and confrontation" in his early days in the White House, and has repeatedly emphasized that the relations is full of "steep competition" and “America will win 21st century”. This is because the United States exactly realizes that the strength of China and the United States is getting closer and closer, and that China's political, military, economic and international influence has exerted tremendous pressure and challenges to the United States.
The word "steep" actually represents the close strength of both countries and the intensity of future competition. But, Mr. Wang suggests, the competition must be orderly, the rule must be based on the Charter of the United Nations and related conventions. Of course, it can also be a rule recognized by both parties through negotiation, but it cannot be simply the so-called "American rule", Mr. Wang says. It is like two runners in a race, and one suddenly announces that the slower runner will be winner when the other is about to reach the finish line. Under the rule of fairness and justice, either of the two countries is not necesary afraid of competition. The United States, for example, can go to Europe to find its allies, and China can also go to Europe too to explore its cooperation partners; China promotes its BRI, and Chinese enterprises invest and develop business worldwide, while US can also do American version of the"BRI" and can also do their businesses anywhere, as long as the competition ina peaceful and orderly way.
To this end, Mr. Wang Xin wishes that the two countries should well manage their differences and confrontation, establish effective control mechanisms and channels, and try to avoid any of direct military conflicts of any scales; the two countries should focus more on the current global challenges from the Covid epidemic and economy recovery, and pay more attention to the livelihood of the people of all countries in the world, especially those in developing or underdeveloped countries. Thirdly, the two countries should actively expand cooperation, reduce the hostile atmosphere in the two countries and create more positive agendas.