Experts on China-US ties: Head-of-state diplomacy, global governance and more

The Chinese capital will soon host one of the most anticipated diplomatic encounters this year as the leaders of the world's two largest economies meet face-to-face.

Against the backdrop of a complex international landscape and shared global challenges, what specific leading roles does head-of-state diplomacy play in stabilizing and advancing China-US relations? What are the opportunities and challenges facing China-US relations?

CGTN talked to several experts, including Wu Xinbo, director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University, Zhang Tengjun, associate research fellow of the Institute of American Studies at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Christopher Newport University's Associate Professor Sun Taiyi and Cui Fan, professor of the School of International Trade and Economics at the University of International Business and Economics, for their insights.

The conversations have been lightly edited for clarity and conciseness. 

CGTN: Head-of-state diplomacy plays an irreplaceable strategic guiding role in bilateral relations. What specific substantive guiding roles do you believe head-of-state diplomacy can play in stabilizing and advancing bilateral ties?

Sun Taiyi: Head-of-state diplomacy plays a uniquely important role in China-US relations because it helps establish the overall tone and strategic direction of the bilateral relationship. Given the scale, complexity and global significance of ties between the two countries, direct communication between top leaders can reduce uncertainty, prevent miscalculation and signal to both bureaucratic systems that stability remains a priority.

At the same time, successful head-of state diplomacy can create momentum for the next phase of bilateral engagement. When leader-level meetings produce tangible outcomes – whether in areas such as military communication, economic coordination, or people-to-people exchanges – they can help build institutional buffers against further deterioration. In particular, if both sides begin discussing or planning future meetings, the continued expectation of high-level engagement itself can contribute to strategic stability.

Cui Fan: The meeting between the two heads of state in conducive to establishing a correct strategic perception for both sides. Strategic perception is the "first button" in China-US relations. Direct communication between the two leaders helps eliminate strategic miscalculations and steer strategic perception back on the right track. China's development brings opportunities to the United States and the world, and the two countries should be partners instead of rivals.

Head-of-state diplomacy sets the strategic framework and top-level design for bilateral ties. Meetings between the two leaders often rise above technical issues at the departmental level. Proceeding from the fundamental interests of both countries and the broader global landscape, they set the strategic course for bilateral relations.

At critical moments when differences emerge, head-of-state diplomacy acts as a stabilizer, injecting political momentum into cooperation in specific fields and enabling the two sides to manage differences and advance cooperation.

Zhang Tengjun: Looking back at more than half a century of China-US relations since normalization, every major breakthrough and critical moment in bilateral ties has hinged on the strategic and top-level guidance of the two heads of state.

Head-of-state diplomacy squarely addresses each other's core concerns and red lines. With a holistic vision, it oversees the management of major differences spanning economy and trade, science and technology, geopolitical security, and ideology. It also helps build and improve high-level communication and crisis management mechanisms, preventing frictional incidents from escalating into all-out confrontation and isolated emergencies from spiraling into strategic conflict.

Head-of-state diplomacy is rooted in the shared interests of the two countries. It coordinates and advances cooperation at both global and bilateral levels in areas including climate governance, public health, energy and food security, artificial intelligence and people-to-people exchanges. It keeps expanding the positive dimensions of bilateral relations, offsets competition and differences through mutually beneficial cooperation, and steadily consolidates the cornerstone for the steady development of China-US ties.

CGTN: In what areas do you believe the two countries should reach a consensus and uphold bottom lines to achieve the goals of stabilizing relations and managing differences?

Wu Xinbo: What merits attention during Trump's visit to China is whether China-US relations can be further elevated on the foundation achieved after the China-US meeting in Busan last October. 

Meanwhile, on a host of major issues in bilateral relations – ranging from economy and trade, science and technology to diplomacy and security – the two sides need to advance the resolution of issues and the management of differences in bilateral relations, and build up momentum for the development of China-US relations.

Zhang Tengjun: To achieve the goal of "stabilizing ties and managing differences" in China-US relations, the upholding of the three principles – mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation – is essential. The key is to set red lines for managing differences, define boundaries for positive competition and create more space for mutually beneficial cooperation. Head-of-state diplomacy remains the central driving force behind this effort.

Specifically, in the political and security sphere, both sides need to recognize that cooperation benefits both countries while confrontation harms both. The US should stop viewing China as its "primary rival" or "the greatest geopolitical challenge" and honor its commitments not to seek a "new Cold War" or seek to change China's institutions and pursue decoupling.

In the economic and technology sphere, both sides should oppose decoupling and work together to maintain the stability of global industrial and supply chains. The US should stop politicizing and weaponizing economic and technological issues, cease unilateral sanctions and export controls against China, and work toward a shared understanding of fair and rules-based competition.

Regarding global governance, both countries should shoulder their responsibilities as major countries and cooperate in addressing global challenges such as climate change, public health, food security and energy security, while building consensus on mutually beneficial cooperation and coordinated action.

Sun Taiyi: Interestingly, some of the very areas that generate the greatest friction between China and the United States may also contribute to a certain degree of strategic stability. The mutual export controls involving rare earths, advanced semiconductors and related technologies have undoubtedly created discomfort and economic costs for both sides.

However, they also demonstrate that each country possesses important forms of leverage over the other. This creates a condition in which both Beijing and Washington increasingly recognize that excessive escalation could impose serious damage on both economies and broader supply chains. In that sense, strategic interdependence itself can become a stabilizing factor, because both sides are aware that unrestricted confrontation would carry substantial costs.

Meanwhile, once questions related to sovereignty, security, or military confrontation become destabilized, however, tensions in every other domain can intensify rapidly. Therefore, maintaining clear communication and avoiding miscalculation on the Taiwan question is likely the single most important prerequisite for broader stability in China-US relations.

Direct leader-to-leader communication can help reduce misunderstandings and potentially allow greater flexibility in exploring areas of limited compromise or stabilization. While expectations for dramatic breakthroughs should remain modest, sustained head-of-state diplomacy can still play a critical role in preventing strategic rivalry from crossing into open confrontation.

CGTN: What specific significance would deepening practical cooperation between the two countries hold for stabilizing the global economy and advancing the reform of global governance?

Cui Fan: As the world's two largest economies and trading nations, China and the US share a common responsibility for the sound development of the global governance system.

China is committed to advancing the reform of the global governance system in the right direction and promoting an equitable and orderly multipolar world as well as a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization.

While safeguarding and developing China-US relations, closer communication, consensus-building and cooperation between the two countries on global governance will play a positive role in advancing world peace and development.

Sun Taiyi: If China and the United States are able to deepen pragmatic cooperation, the most immediate effect would be greater stability in the global economy and international system. Stable China-US relations would help lower the risks of supply-chain disruption, financial volatility and geopolitical fragmentation. It would also improve the international environment for investment, technological development and long-term economic planning.

The future of China-US relations may not simply be a question of rivalry versus cooperation, but also a question of whether the two countries can jointly shape updated rules and institutions suited to 21st-century realities. A more cooperative approach would allow elements of the existing international system to evolve rather than collapse. That would not mean the end of competition, nor would it require either side to abandon its national interests. Rather, it would suggest that major countries can compete within a shared framework while still preserving overall systemic stability.

Zhang Tengjun: Whether China and the United States can properly manage their relationship bears directly on the future of the world.

This year, China is hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders' meeting, while the US will host the G20 Leaders' Summit. The two sides can support each other and work to ensure both events achieve positive outcomes, contributing to global economic growth and improving global economic governance.

Deeper practical cooperation between China and the US could provide a major boost to the global economic recovery, help stabilize global industrial and supply chains and strengthen joint efforts to address challenges such as energy and food security, debt risks and climate change. It could also safeguard the international system with the United Nations at its core and the international order based on international law.

Meanwhile, bilateral practical cooperation could serve as a useful example of peaceful coexistence and mutually beneficial cooperation between major countries, demonstrating that the world is large enough for both China and the United States to develop and prosper together.