Xinhua News Review: Rectification of China US Relations Needs to Consolidate Public Opinion Foundation | China US Relations | Two Countries | Xinhua

Beijing, July 26th, Xinhua News Agency (Xinhua) - Correction of Sino US Relations Needs to Consolidate Public Opinion Foundation

Xinhua News Agency reporter Gao Wencheng

In recent times, centenarian Kissinger has visited China as an "old friend", and many American corporate executives have come to China to seek to expand cooperation. The exchange of visits and exchanges between civil organizations such as chambers of commerce, friendly groups, and think tanks between China and the United States has become increasingly active. "Friends of Guling" visit China to recite good words of friendship, and young people from both countries take advantage of the summer vacation to visit each other's countries and leave smiling faces on social media... With the gradual recovery of high-level interaction between China and the United States, civil exchanges between the two countries have shown a faster trend of warming, reflecting the public opinion that hopes for China US relations to return to the right track.

The friendship between countries lies in mutual affinity between the people, and the foundation of the development of state to state relations lies in the people of both countries. In the past few years, China US relations have been hovering at a low point, but the exchanges and exchanges between the Chinese and American people have never been interrupted. In the face of serious difficulties in China US relations, the people of both countries can further enhance their understanding and friendship by moving and exchanging more, and lay a solid public opinion foundation for the return of China US relations to the right track.

Looking back at the history of China US relations, civil exchanges have provided impetus for the development of bilateral relations. At the 1971 Nagoya World Table Tennis Championships in Japan, Chinese table tennis player Zhuang Zedong had friendly exchanges with American athlete Cohen, who had taken the wrong train, sowing the seeds of friendship. The older generation leaders of the two countries, with extraordinary strategic foresight, arranged for the table tennis teams of the two countries to visit each other, using "small balls to turn big balls" to jointly promote the historic process of normalizing China US relations. Over the past 40 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two countries have achieved fruitful results in civil exchanges: 284 pairs of friendly provinces, states, and cities have covered more than 90% of the states and cities in the United States; The mechanisms such as the China US Agricultural Roundtable Forum and the China US Friendship City Conference have been effective and have facilitated numerous cooperation projects between the two sides. The fact has repeatedly proven that the more frequent the exchanges between the Chinese and American people, the more solid the foundation of friendship between the two countries, and the more prosperous practical cooperation.

However, due to the comprehensive containment and suppression of China by the US government, civil exchanges between China and the United States have suffered serious setbacks in recent years. The US government has introduced a series of restrictive measures to strictly scrutinize, monitor, and restrict Chinese students and scholars in the US, exchanges and cooperation between Chinese and American universities, Confucius Institutes, and Chinese media in the US. Multiple cultural exchange programs between China and the US have also been cancelled, many of which have been ongoing for decades and are well received by participants from both sides. Some American politicians, driven by their own selfish interests, are making things difficult for Chinese personnel stationed in the United States, creating farces such as "spy balloons," "spy farmland," and "spy port cranes." The US is trying to use these manipulations to vilify China's image, spread suspicion and disgust towards China in American society, and make anti China a so-called "political correctness.". This is an attempt to undermine the public opinion foundation of China US relations, a great disrespect to the decades long efforts of the builders of friendship between the two countries, and an irresponsibility towards history.

The lower the level of China US relations, the more it is necessary to strengthen civil exchanges and stabilize the foundation of public opinion. It is gratifying that exchanges in the local, civilian, cultural and educational, think tank and other fields between the two countries have resumed and are expected to play an important role in stabilizing and improving China US relations once again. As a witness and firsthand witness to the development of civil exchanges between China and the United States, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Chairman of the Kuhn Foundation in the United States, said that strengthening civil exchanges is a reliable way for both China and the United States to transform opportunities and common needs into positive cooperation and constructive relations. To promote the stable and healthy development of bilateral relations, there is no better prescription than strengthening civil exchanges. American netizens left messages on social media saying that those who support the US China relationship are still there, but they are all hiding and need to be identified one by one.

An important experience that the civil exchanges between China and the United States have contributed to the development of bilateral relations is that the people of China and the United States can completely overcome differences in systems, cultures, and languages, and establish a deep friendship. With the recent increase in interaction frequency, the improvement and development of China US relations have ushered in a window of opportunity. If the US government sincerely maintains constructive relations between China and the United States, it should comply with public opinion and do more things that are conducive to promoting friendship between the two peoples, rather than the opposite.