To relieve tensions, ease up on mistrust and develop more respect. That’s a leading policy think tank’s prescription for the leaders of the US and China.
The two countries could make the world a better place by working in harmony, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) says in a new report.
“US-Chinese ties could have a greater impact on international affairs than any other relationship,” the report said.
Global financial instability, proliferation of weapons and terrorism could all be eased by US-Chinese cooperation, the report said, as well as the challenges surrounding climate change and energy.
“US-China partnership is indispensable for addressing many of the main challenges of the 21st century,” said the think tank’s commission on China.
While disagreements are unavoidable, they should be handled diplomatically and privately, the report said.
The commission recommended that Washington and Beijing expand the number of diplomats and young professionals in each other’s countries. It also recommended the creation of a joint public-private task force to promote technology exchanges, and initiate energy and climate projects.
US President Barack Obama last week signaled a need for more frequent and intense communications with China to avoid military confrontations that could upset a relationship crucial to solving global crises.
Obama spoke against the backdrop of lingering mistrust over a confrontation in the South China Sea involving an unarmed US ship.
A top US commander, Admiral Timothy Keating, testified to a Senate committee on Thursday that the run-in shows China will not behave acceptably.
On Monday, meanwhile, China’s chief climate negotiator, Li Gao (李高), said countries buying Chinese goods should be held responsible for heat-trapping gases released during manufacturing in China.
China has surpassed the US as the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases. But 15 percent to 25 percent of its emissions are generated by manufacturing goods for export, Li said.
In the worldwide economic slump, demand is weak in the US and China, which contributes to the global economic downturn and threatens to ignite already simmering trade tensions.
The report was co-chaired by former defense secretary William Cohen and Maurice Greenberg, former head of American International Group, who is now chief executive of CV Starr Co, a privately held company.
BEIJING FORUM: ‘So-called freedom of navigation advocated by certain countries outside the region challenges the norms of international relations,’ the minister said Chinese Minister of National Defense Dong Jun (董軍) yesterday denounced “hegemonic logic and acts of bullying” during remarks at a Beijing forum that were full of thinly veiled references to the US. Organizers said that about 1,800 representatives from 100 countries, including political, military and academic leaders, were in Beijing for the Xiangshan Forum. The three-day event comes as China presents itself as a mediator of fraught global issues including the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. Addressing attendees at the opening ceremony, Dong warned of “new threats and challenges” now facing world peace. “While the themes of the times — peace and development —
Decked out with fake crystal chandeliers and velvet sofas, cosmetic surgery clinics in Afghanistan’s capital are a world away from the austerity of Taliban rule, where Botox, lip filler and hair transplants reign. Despite the Taliban authorities’ strict theocratic rule, and prevailing conservatism and poverty in Afghanistan, the 20 or so clinics in Kabul have flourished since the end of decades of war in the country. Foreign doctors, especially from Turkey, travel to Kabul to train Afghans, who equally undertake internships in Istanbul, while equipment is imported from Asia or Europe. In the waiting rooms, the clientele is often well-off and includes men
BRIBERY ALLEGATIONS: A prosecutor said they considered the risk of Hak-ja Han tampering with evidence to be very high, which led them to seek the warrant South Korean prosecutors yesterday requested an arrest warrant for the leader of the Unification Church, Hak-ja Han, on allegations of bribery linked to the country’s former first lady and incitement to destroy evidence. The move came a day after the 82-year-old was questioned over her alleged role in bribing former first lady Kim Keon-hee and a lawmaker. Founded in 1954 by her late husband, Sun Myung Moon, the Unification Church has long been the subject of controversy and criticism, with its teachings centered on Moon’s role as the “second coming” and its mass weddings. Followers are derisively referred to as “Moonies.” However, the church’s
Venezuela on Saturday organized a day of military training for civilians in response to the US deployment in the Caribbean, and amid new threats from US President Donald Trump. About a month ago, Washington deployed warships to international waters off Venezuela’s coast, backed by F-35 jets sent to Puerto Rico in what it calls an anti-drug and anti-terrorism operation. Venezuelan Minister of Defense Vladimir Padrino Lopez has accused Washington of waging “undeclared war” in the Caribbean, after US strikes killed over a dozen alleged drug traffickers off his country’s coast. Caracas also accused the US of seeking regime change, and
RSS