China Voice: Xi's visit to strengthen China-U.S. trust

The following is the translation of an article by Zuo Xiying, a lecturer with the school of international studies of Renmin University, published by the overseas edition of the People's Daily on Monday.

President Xi Jinping will start a state visit to the United States on September 22.

Looking back at a period of more than three decades after China and the United States established diplomatic relations, each visit by Chinese leaders to the United States had consolidated the foundation of bilateral cooperation and steered the relationship.

Undoubtedly, Xi's visit this time will increase trust between the two nations.

The matter that attracts most attention from people both at home and abroad is how this can be done.

First, enhancing strategic trust hinges on the two sides' consensus on the international order. As two nations shouldering important responsibilities, China and the United States are crucial to the current international order.

Both need global stability, which should be the principal consensus and a starting point for building trust.

Specifically, China should continue its strategy of integration, seeking reform within the established order and seeking to rise within the system. Meanwhile, the United States should keep the international order open and adjust it to fit the changing situation.

For the two sides, the adjustment is a low-cost strategic choice that is necessary to maintain peace and stability in international society. The details of the adjustment of the current order require negotiations on specific issues in real-life situations.

Both China and the United States need to make clear their intentions and cooperate on specific issues on the condition of agreeing on maintaining the stability of the international order.

Second, enhancing trust depends on effective crisis control.

China's growth has brought great tension to the bilateral ties, marking a big change in the power pattern in the Asia-Pacific. In the meantime, the United States has not acclimatized to the changes, leading to strategic anxiety toward China among the political elite in the nation.

Confronted with thorny issues, both sides should intensify efforts to manage and control crises and guide public opinion by explaining to people which choices serve national interests. This helps to create a sound internal environment for bilateral relations. As Kissinger said, a great president must be an educator, bridging the gap between his people's present and future.

In order to prevent incidents that will weaken bilateral ties, China and the United States should promote a mechanism for communication on major military moves and a code of conduct concerning their air forces and navies on the high seas. They should also coordinate more on nuclear weapons and space and manage and control potential conflicts caused by certain departments in practical operations.

It should be noted that China's territorial disputes with Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam do not belong to the sphere of China's ties with the United States. However, they have become factors hampering the development of bilateral relations. China and United States need to actively manage and control the acts of the third parties, bringing them back to the big framework of bilateral ties.

Third, rules should be established to help boost strategic trust between China and the United States. The two countries are sure to confront new problems in the development of their ties. For instance, cyber security has become an important issue.

While the Internet has grown wildly, there are few norms governing online security. New ideas should be employed to solve these emerging issues. Negotiations should be conducted to reach consensus on rules acceptable to both sides. Appropriate handling of such emerging issues will strengthen trust while a bad job might bring stumbling stones for the relationship.

All in all, consensus on international order is a prerequisite for China-U.S. trust, while crisis management and control as well as formulation of rules are two pillars to support it. The three factors are of vital importance to enhancing trust between the two nations.

Since China and the United States are marching on a road which no predecessors have ever set foot on, they urgently need to develop more strategic trust in each other and jointly explore new patterns of cooperation. These are objectives that the presidents need to work hard to achieve. Endi