Without an open mind and a pragmatic way of thinking to change for the good of the people, the Chinese people couldn't have gone such far in either poverty elimination or economic development. But along its way to retrieve its national pride, China faces a severe task of having itself better understood so as to defuse unnecessary disputes and practice what Confucius advocated "being harmonious yet different."

Many westerners do not realize China's gigantic internal gap in wealth, regional development and public utilities. Some take Shanghai and Beijing for what the whole China is like, others think the Chinese only refer to the Han nationality.

In this sense, China needs to think and act differently, by telling the world more of its less developed areas and thinking more of herself from the perspectives of others.

The United States, on the other hand, may also need to be introspective and take initiatives to figure out effective new ways to tackle its own chronical problems.

Given that the US jobless rate hit a record high of 10.2 percent in October, a lot of internal pressure in the country might once again target China as a source of the problem.

And with the next mid-term elections approaching in the United States, American trade partners, especially China, might have to face more finger-pointing and protectionism, which would be detrimental to bilateral relations and global economic recovery.

To avoid turning back to the same old page of history, it might be time for the United States to go back to the premier question and think what it could do differently.

Instead of blaming others for its unemployment, for example, the United States could create jobs by expanding export, such as boosting high-tech products to China.

To embark on an unbeaten path on developing bilateral relations, however, it needs not only political wisdom, but also trust, sufficient respect and a broad public understanding of the real China.

(Xinhua News Agency November 18, 2009)