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If U.S. scholars and officials had any lingering misunderstandings about building a “new type of major power relations” between China and the United States as proposed by China a year ago， they should have been answered at the informal summit of the two countries’ leaders at the Sunnylands estate in California in early June. During this unusual personal meeting in the desert resort， Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Barack Obama pledged to try to build the new type of bilateral ties based on mutual respect and winwin cooperation.
After the summit， the U.S. side commented that the meeting was “positive and constructive.” Obama’s National Security Advisor Tom Donilon said during a press briefing that the two presidents “had very good discussions in a uniquely informal atmosphere，” adding that their discussions were “wide-ranging and quite successful in achieving the goals that we set forth for this meeting.”
Meanwhile， Chinese observers remarked that Xi’s first face-to-face meeting with Obama as China’s president was a good start for Sino-U.S. relations after the completion of the latest leadership transitions in both countries. The summit， which set the tone for Sino-U.S. relations over the next four to 10 years， was of strategic significance for bilateral ties and the world at large， they said.
“If we call former U.S. President Richard Nixon’s China visit 41 years ago ‘the handshake across the Pacific Ocean，’ then the Xi-Obama Sunnylands meeting can be seen as ‘a strategic dialogue across the Pacific Ocean，’” said Ruan Zongze， Vice President of the China Institute of International Studies （CIIS）.
Casual atmosphere
The Xi-Obama meeting was originally scheduled to take place at the G20 Summit in Russia’s Saint Petersburg this September.
“In view of the importance of Sino-U.S. relations， the initially scheduled meeting might be a little late，” said Qu Xing， President of the CIIS. “China has been very active in diplomatic activities since its new leadership took office in March. Considering President Xi’s Russia and Africa trip and Premier Li Keqiang’s Asia and Europe trip in recent months， an absence of state-level interaction between China and the United States would seem unusual as the Sino-U.S. ties are presently the most important bilateral relationship.”
“Though there have been intensive visits to Beijing by high-ranking U.S. officials in the past several months， they cannot substitute meetings between heads of state. Summit meetings have played a crucial role in the history of Sino-U.S. relations. They usually set the tone for and invigorate bilateral ties，” said Tao Wenzhao， a researcher with the Institute of American Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Against this backdrop， the summit was scheduled under the invitation of the U.S. Government. Xi and Obama chose to meet informally at Sunnylands， a 200-acre （81-hectare） Annenberg estate near the U.S. West Coast for the first time as heads of state.
The arrangement， Qu said， has somewhat of a special meaning in that the dialogue faced the Pacific Ocean and concerned cooperation across the ocean.
“The cozy and leisurely environment was helpful for the two leaders to establish a close personal friendship and good working contact. And the approximately eight hours of talks between the two presidents were conducive to fully exchanging in-depth views on bilateral ties and deepening mutual trust，” said Qu.
Jin Canrong， Associate Dean of the School of International Studies at Renmin University of China， argued the informal meeting showed the confidence of the new Chinese leadership.
“Xi’s acceptance of an informal meeting style at an estate lacking ceremonies reflected the self-confidence and pragmatic style of China’s new leadership，” Jin said.
In addition， Jin said that the estate meeting also reflected the Sino-U.S. relations’ growing maturity. By avoiding complicated protocols， the relaxed meeting could help the two leaders focus more on substantive issues.
New type of relations
In 2010， the Obama administration announced its “pivot to Asia” strategy. China， surpassing Japan in 2011， has since become the world’s second largest economy. And many analysts claimed the world has shifted its focus from Europe to the Asia Pacific. In this context， as the two most important Asia-Pacific countries and the world’s first and second largest economies， China and the United States should find a way to get along well with each other， observers said.
Ancient Greek historian Thucydides claimed it was the Spartans’ fear of the growing power of Athens that made war inevitable. Based on this perception， U.S. scholar John J. Mearsheimer wrote in his political treatise The Tragedy of Great Power Politics that established and emerging powers are doomed to confrontation and war.
From a historical standpoint， the world has indeed suffered much pain in the vicious cycle of power struggles. In the 20th century， the most prominent confrontation was between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War， which lasted for more than four decades and only ended after the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991. But in the 21st century， an era with highly interdependent relations among countries， observers believe a new type of relations between major countries is not impossible.
The new type of relations between major powers， first raised by former Chinese President Hu Jintao at the China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue in 2012， is an attempt of China to break the vicious circle and get along well with all other major powers. Its significance was further highlighted when it became a national strategy and was written into a report delivered to the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China held in November.
During the summit with Obama， President Xi summarized the concept in three phrases—“no conflict and no confrontation，” “mutual respect” and “cooperation toward win-win results.”
Observers said the building of a new type of relations is based on the highly interdependent relations and common interests among major powers.
“The current Sino-U.S. relationship， especially when it comes to economic and cultural exchanges， has far exceeded any bilateral relations between major powers in history. The incredible width and depth of this relationship have laid a solid foundation for this new type of relations，” said Wang Jisi， Dean of the School of International Studies at Peking University.
Wang said the prospect of bilateral economic relations is quite promising as the two economies are highly complementary. He predicted the two countries would become the largest trade partner of each other within eight to 10 years.
Currently， the two countries are each other’s second largest partner with bilateral trade amounting to about $484.7 billion in 2012.
Meanwhile， a joint research report titled U.S.-China Economic Relations in the Next Decade released in May said the milestone would be reached in 2022. One of the authors of the report said if the United States eases its restriction on exports of hi-tech products， oil and gas to China， its exports to China would increase more swiftly.
“The bilateral economic relationship has great potential. For instance， about 1.5 million Chinese tourists visited the United States in 2012. But if the U.S. side issues more visas to Chinese people， the number could reach 10 million in 10 years， which could bring in at least$5 billion for the United States，” said Wang.
Wang added that potential bilateral economic cooperation in the agricultural sector is even greater， noting China is a huge market with a large population but less arable land， while the United States has a large arable land area and higher agricultural productivity. Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson also stressed the common interests and highly intertwined economies of the two countries in an article on the Xi-Obama meeting titled The Path to Double Happiness recently published on the website of The Wall Street Journal， saying， “It is important that the two presidents seize this moment to reinvigorate their shared economic agenda.”
Paulson noted that China is America’s fastest growing export market. When worldwide U.S. exports plummeted almost 18 percent during the 2009 financial crisis， exports to China dropped only about 2.5 percent. The figures demonstrate China’s potential to become a demand driver for U.S. products over the long haul and the degree to which their economies are intertwined. He said the highly mutual interdependence has deeply touched the lives of ordinary Americans and Chinese.
Ruan claimed the fundamentally changed global situation also pushed China and the United States into a community of shared interests.
Ruan said that in the current world， neither China nor the United States can settle all international problems. Only by joining hands can they overcome difficulties， address crises and create opportunities for their common development.
During the summit， Obama told Xi the U.S. side is willing to construct a new state-to-state cooperation model with China based on mutual benefit and mutual respect， so as to jointly meet various global challenges.
From another perspective， Ruan noted， the driving force for closer Sino-U.S. relations has undergone fundamental changes.
“Nixon’s ice-breaking visit to China， which helped the two countries reengage with each other， was initially driven by outside pressure， including the international strategic structure and the threat of the Soviet Union，” said Ruan. “But now Sino-U.S. relations are increasingly driven by domestic demands of the two countries，
such as economic cooperation.”
An arduous path
Analysts said that gaps， differences and disputes undeniably persist between China and the United States， such as trade friction， discriminatory and opaque investment policies of the United States and cyber security issues. Therefore， they claimed it would be a long， arduous and complicated task for the two countries to build a new type of relations. However， most observers are not pessimistic.
“There are disputes， but we can see in the summit that both leaders agreed to settle the problems through negotiations. I think it is a very important consensus they have reached，” said Qu. Ruan said disputes could also be turned into cooperation opportunities， noting that both China and the United States are trying to turn the common challenge of cyber security into an area of cooperation.
At this summit， Xi told Obama that cyber security should be a new highlight of bilateral cooperation instead of a source of suspicion and friction. They agreed to strengthen dialogue， coordination and cooperation through the already established cyber working group.
During their talks， the two presidents also pledged to strengthen military cooperation. It was agreed that the Chinese defense minister will visit the United States and China will attend the U.S.-hosted Rim of the Pacific exercises in 2014.
“The military relationship is a weak point in bilateral relations. It is a positive signal that Obama proposed this time to institutionalize bilateral military communication，” said Tao.
Ruan claimed the U.S. move for military cooperation reflected a new way of thinking， indicating there would be new steps to be taken in bilateral military relations. An institutionalized military relationship would provide a guarantee for the new type of bilateral ties.
After the summit， the U.S. side commented that the meeting was “positive and constructive.” Obama’s National Security Advisor Tom Donilon said during a press briefing that the two presidents “had very good discussions in a uniquely informal atmosphere，” adding that their discussions were “wide-ranging and quite successful in achieving the goals that we set forth for this meeting.”
Meanwhile， Chinese observers remarked that Xi’s first face-to-face meeting with Obama as China’s president was a good start for Sino-U.S. relations after the completion of the latest leadership transitions in both countries. The summit， which set the tone for Sino-U.S. relations over the next four to 10 years， was of strategic significance for bilateral ties and the world at large， they said.
“If we call former U.S. President Richard Nixon’s China visit 41 years ago ‘the handshake across the Pacific Ocean，’ then the Xi-Obama Sunnylands meeting can be seen as ‘a strategic dialogue across the Pacific Ocean，’” said Ruan Zongze， Vice President of the China Institute of International Studies （CIIS）.
Casual atmosphere
The Xi-Obama meeting was originally scheduled to take place at the G20 Summit in Russia’s Saint Petersburg this September.
“In view of the importance of Sino-U.S. relations， the initially scheduled meeting might be a little late，” said Qu Xing， President of the CIIS. “China has been very active in diplomatic activities since its new leadership took office in March. Considering President Xi’s Russia and Africa trip and Premier Li Keqiang’s Asia and Europe trip in recent months， an absence of state-level interaction between China and the United States would seem unusual as the Sino-U.S. ties are presently the most important bilateral relationship.”
“Though there have been intensive visits to Beijing by high-ranking U.S. officials in the past several months， they cannot substitute meetings between heads of state. Summit meetings have played a crucial role in the history of Sino-U.S. relations. They usually set the tone for and invigorate bilateral ties，” said Tao Wenzhao， a researcher with the Institute of American Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Against this backdrop， the summit was scheduled under the invitation of the U.S. Government. Xi and Obama chose to meet informally at Sunnylands， a 200-acre （81-hectare） Annenberg estate near the U.S. West Coast for the first time as heads of state.
The arrangement， Qu said， has somewhat of a special meaning in that the dialogue faced the Pacific Ocean and concerned cooperation across the ocean.
“The cozy and leisurely environment was helpful for the two leaders to establish a close personal friendship and good working contact. And the approximately eight hours of talks between the two presidents were conducive to fully exchanging in-depth views on bilateral ties and deepening mutual trust，” said Qu.
Jin Canrong， Associate Dean of the School of International Studies at Renmin University of China， argued the informal meeting showed the confidence of the new Chinese leadership.
“Xi’s acceptance of an informal meeting style at an estate lacking ceremonies reflected the self-confidence and pragmatic style of China’s new leadership，” Jin said.
In addition， Jin said that the estate meeting also reflected the Sino-U.S. relations’ growing maturity. By avoiding complicated protocols， the relaxed meeting could help the two leaders focus more on substantive issues.
New type of relations
In 2010， the Obama administration announced its “pivot to Asia” strategy. China， surpassing Japan in 2011， has since become the world’s second largest economy. And many analysts claimed the world has shifted its focus from Europe to the Asia Pacific. In this context， as the two most important Asia-Pacific countries and the world’s first and second largest economies， China and the United States should find a way to get along well with each other， observers said.
Ancient Greek historian Thucydides claimed it was the Spartans’ fear of the growing power of Athens that made war inevitable. Based on this perception， U.S. scholar John J. Mearsheimer wrote in his political treatise The Tragedy of Great Power Politics that established and emerging powers are doomed to confrontation and war.
From a historical standpoint， the world has indeed suffered much pain in the vicious cycle of power struggles. In the 20th century， the most prominent confrontation was between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War， which lasted for more than four decades and only ended after the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991. But in the 21st century， an era with highly interdependent relations among countries， observers believe a new type of relations between major countries is not impossible.
The new type of relations between major powers， first raised by former Chinese President Hu Jintao at the China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue in 2012， is an attempt of China to break the vicious circle and get along well with all other major powers. Its significance was further highlighted when it became a national strategy and was written into a report delivered to the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China held in November.
During the summit with Obama， President Xi summarized the concept in three phrases—“no conflict and no confrontation，” “mutual respect” and “cooperation toward win-win results.”
Observers said the building of a new type of relations is based on the highly interdependent relations and common interests among major powers.
“The current Sino-U.S. relationship， especially when it comes to economic and cultural exchanges， has far exceeded any bilateral relations between major powers in history. The incredible width and depth of this relationship have laid a solid foundation for this new type of relations，” said Wang Jisi， Dean of the School of International Studies at Peking University.
Wang said the prospect of bilateral economic relations is quite promising as the two economies are highly complementary. He predicted the two countries would become the largest trade partner of each other within eight to 10 years.
Currently， the two countries are each other’s second largest partner with bilateral trade amounting to about $484.7 billion in 2012.
Meanwhile， a joint research report titled U.S.-China Economic Relations in the Next Decade released in May said the milestone would be reached in 2022. One of the authors of the report said if the United States eases its restriction on exports of hi-tech products， oil and gas to China， its exports to China would increase more swiftly.
“The bilateral economic relationship has great potential. For instance， about 1.5 million Chinese tourists visited the United States in 2012. But if the U.S. side issues more visas to Chinese people， the number could reach 10 million in 10 years， which could bring in at least$5 billion for the United States，” said Wang.
Wang added that potential bilateral economic cooperation in the agricultural sector is even greater， noting China is a huge market with a large population but less arable land， while the United States has a large arable land area and higher agricultural productivity. Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson also stressed the common interests and highly intertwined economies of the two countries in an article on the Xi-Obama meeting titled The Path to Double Happiness recently published on the website of The Wall Street Journal， saying， “It is important that the two presidents seize this moment to reinvigorate their shared economic agenda.”
Paulson noted that China is America’s fastest growing export market. When worldwide U.S. exports plummeted almost 18 percent during the 2009 financial crisis， exports to China dropped only about 2.5 percent. The figures demonstrate China’s potential to become a demand driver for U.S. products over the long haul and the degree to which their economies are intertwined. He said the highly mutual interdependence has deeply touched the lives of ordinary Americans and Chinese.
Ruan claimed the fundamentally changed global situation also pushed China and the United States into a community of shared interests.
Ruan said that in the current world， neither China nor the United States can settle all international problems. Only by joining hands can they overcome difficulties， address crises and create opportunities for their common development.
During the summit， Obama told Xi the U.S. side is willing to construct a new state-to-state cooperation model with China based on mutual benefit and mutual respect， so as to jointly meet various global challenges.
From another perspective， Ruan noted， the driving force for closer Sino-U.S. relations has undergone fundamental changes.
“Nixon’s ice-breaking visit to China， which helped the two countries reengage with each other， was initially driven by outside pressure， including the international strategic structure and the threat of the Soviet Union，” said Ruan. “But now Sino-U.S. relations are increasingly driven by domestic demands of the two countries，
such as economic cooperation.”
An arduous path
Analysts said that gaps， differences and disputes undeniably persist between China and the United States， such as trade friction， discriminatory and opaque investment policies of the United States and cyber security issues. Therefore， they claimed it would be a long， arduous and complicated task for the two countries to build a new type of relations. However， most observers are not pessimistic.
“There are disputes， but we can see in the summit that both leaders agreed to settle the problems through negotiations. I think it is a very important consensus they have reached，” said Qu. Ruan said disputes could also be turned into cooperation opportunities， noting that both China and the United States are trying to turn the common challenge of cyber security into an area of cooperation.
At this summit， Xi told Obama that cyber security should be a new highlight of bilateral cooperation instead of a source of suspicion and friction. They agreed to strengthen dialogue， coordination and cooperation through the already established cyber working group.
During their talks， the two presidents also pledged to strengthen military cooperation. It was agreed that the Chinese defense minister will visit the United States and China will attend the U.S.-hosted Rim of the Pacific exercises in 2014.
“The military relationship is a weak point in bilateral relations. It is a positive signal that Obama proposed this time to institutionalize bilateral military communication，” said Tao.
Ruan claimed the U.S. move for military cooperation reflected a new way of thinking， indicating there would be new steps to be taken in bilateral military relations. An institutionalized military relationship would provide a guarantee for the new type of bilateral ties.