"The peace and progress of the world depend on the abilities of the US and China to respect each other's core interests, and to modify the core interests in order to make cooperation possible," former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said when marking the 50th founding anniversary of the National Committee on US-China Relations (NCUSCR) in 2016.

As China and the United States prepare for the first summit between President Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago in Florida this week, the stakes are high – but so is the opportunity to enhance mutual understanding and expand cooperation, which will benefit the peoples of the world's two largest economies and beyond.

Fortunately, recent interactions between Chinese and American leaders show encouraging signs in bilateral relations.

Xi sent Trump a congratulatory message on November 9 last year after the latter won the US presidential election, saying that they could work together to boost China-US relations so as to better benefit peoples around the world.

"I highly value the relations between China and the United States, and I am looking forward to working together with you to expand China-US cooperation in every field, at the bilateral, regional and global levels, on the basis of the principles of non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation, with differences controlled in a constructive manner, so as to push China-US relations further forward from a new starting point, better benefiting the peoples of the two countries and other countries," Xi said.

Five days later, Xi congratulated Trump in a telephone conversation and discussed China-US relations with the president-elect.

Since the two countries established formal ties in 1979, bilateral relations have been continuously progressing, bringing tangible benefits to the two peoples and promoting world and regional peace, stability and prosperity, Xi said.

Facts have shown that cooperation is the only correct choice for the two countries, he said.

Trump said China is a great and important country with eye-catching development prospects, adding that the US and China can achieve win-win results featuring mutual benefits.

On February 8, 2017, Trump sent Xi a letter to extend his greetings ahead of China's Lantern Festival, which fell on February 11 this year.

The US president wrote that he looked forward to working with China to develop a constructive relationship.

Two days later, Xi and Trump spoke by phone for the first time after Trump's inauguration as the US president on January 20. Xi said he appreciated his US counterpart for stressing that his administration adheres to the one-China policy, which the Chinese president called the political basis of China-US relations.

Trump reiterated that ‍the US government adheres to the one-China policy.

During a press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Washington on February 10, Trump told reporters that his phone talks with Xi were "very, very good" and "very, very warm," stressing that better Sino-American relations will benefit Japan.

The American president emphasized that the US and China "are on the process of getting along very well."

Xi met with visiting US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in Beijing on March 19, telling the American top diplomat that China and the US can be "very good partners."

"The development of China-US relations faces important opportunities at the moment," Xi stressed. 

He added that he had "good communications" with Trump by phone and letter. "We both believe China and the US can absolutely be very good partners," said the Chinese president.

Xi reiterated that cooperation is "the only right choice" for the two countries, which share "far more common interests than differences."

Tillerson, whose visit to China came as the two sides were finalizing details for the upcoming Xi-Trump summit, said the US president expects to meet Xi "at an early date" and looks forward to an opportunity to visit China in the future.

The secretary of state indicated that the US hopes to develop its ties with China on the principles of non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation. He added that the two countries should improve mutual understanding, strengthen coordination and cooperation and address the challenges faced by the international community together.

Trump hopes his meetings with Xi – both in the US this April and future interactions – would chart the course for the development of US-China relations in the next 50 years, according to Tillerson.

Talking about the upcoming summit last Thursday, White House spokesperson Sean Spicer also said Trump hopes to "chart a way forward on a bilateral relationship between our two nations."

As Trump tries to work with Xi to develop a long-term bilateral relationship, the summit could see the two sides exchange views based on an important consensus – the principles of non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation, on which Tillerson echoed Xi during their talks in Beijing.

Besides these principles, China-US relations are also built on respect to each other's core interests. After reaffirming his government's adherence to the one-China policy, Trump will need to expand and consolidate consensus with his Chinese counterpart on other major concerns of the two countries during their summit.

"It is unrealistic for two major countries to have no disagreement and we may encounter some situations as our interests interact in broader areas," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said at a press conference last Friday. "But it is good that we have the consensus to pursue win-win cooperation on the basis of non-confrontation, non-conflict and mutual respect. I think things will be easier with this consensus in place."

Kissinger believes that if China and the US can respect each other's core interests and work together, the world will be a better place. With bilateral ties moving in a positive direction, how Xi and Trump take this crucial relationship forward in their first meeting will be closely watched across the globe.