“Win-Win Cooperation” Is Our Goal for China-U.S. Relations

Ambassador Xie Feng speaking at the Chinese embassy in Washington, DC. September 27, 2023

September 29. 2023

On Wednesday night, September 27th, I had the pleasure of attending China’s 74th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, at the Chinese Embassy in Washington DC. Officials of the US government, policymakers, and think tank analysts should carefully read the presentation-Remarks by Amb Xie Feng-by the new ambassador of China to the United States, Xie Feng.

The most salient portions of his comments are obvious to me and should be understood by all rational people. China desires Win-Win cooperation with the United States. The ambassador is correct in emphasizing that when China’s economy is expanding, it not only helps 1.4 billion Chinese people, but it actually also advances the world economy and benefits all people on our planet. Therefore, those in Washington and elsewhere, who foolishly gloat over the difficulties or temporary declines in the Chinese economy are really not acting in the interest of the United States. Ambassador Feng also emphasized that it is dangerous for the two largest economies armed with nuclear weapons to be involved in a Cold War much less a Hot War, and this has to be avoided at all costs for the sake of humanity.

In fact, there is no objective inherent contradiction between the development of China and the development of the United States. I know this as an expert on African political economy. The needs of the African nations in terms of basic infrastructure; railroads, electricity, roads, hospitals, and schools is so massive that all nations could collaborate together in addressing this serious infrastructure deficit. China and the United States actually share a common interest in the development of humankind. China and the United States could take up jointly the mission of eliminating poverty in Africa.

What is preventing this type of global economic progress, is the dominant U.S. geopolitical mindset that views hegemony in the world as a zero-sum game of winners and losers. This perverted geopolitical outlook prevents the type of superpower cooperation between the U.S. and China, which Ambassador Feng alluded to in his remarks.

Following the presentation by Ambassador Feng there was a 45 minute delightful musical presentation by young musicians from the Juilliard School in New York City. They performed classical Western music and classical Chinese music. This was not only a joy to listen to, but actually made clear to me something very important about Chinese culture. Classical music is the most rigorous form of music that stimulates the human mind and is actually composed for the purpose of nurturing   human creative thinking.

The mini-concert began with a composition from Johannes Brahms that was performed with precision and passion. It was also very interesting for me to sit there and observe an audience of several hundred people quietly, and thoughtfully listening to classical music in the Chinese Embassy. Most people don’t understand that classical music is not meant just for Western audiences. Classical music is intended for all human beings. Every great form of music, drama, and poetry, if they qualify as classical, share the same quality: developing the human mind. Therefore, having this performance following the presentation by Ambassador Feng confirms to me the desire by China to have a working relationship with the United States and the West. In this instance, classical music was chosen as a universal medium to build a friendship between China and the U.S.

Thus, to my mind, the two events are connected as if from a single piece of cloth: An insightful presentation by Ambassador Feng, followed by an excellent classical music performance by a talented trio (cello, violin, piano). This is an eloquent method to educate the audience on the inseparability of politics and culture, when conducted at the highest level.

As a result, I had an informative and enjoyable evening. I presume others did as well.

Young students from the Juilliard School, NYC, performing at the Chinese Embassy. There is a sister Juilliard School in Tianjin, China 

Remarks by H.E. Ambassador Xie Feng At the Reception Marking the 74th Anniversary of The Founding of the People’s Republic of China.

Reads the entirety of Remarks by Amb Xie Feng

Excerpts follow:

Dear friends,

Welcome to the first in-person National Day reception at our embassy after the pandemic!

It is a great pleasure to get together with you face to face to celebrate the 74th birthday of the People’s Republic of China. Let me extend my heartfelt thanks to friends from various communities for your longstanding support for China and China-U.S. relations, and also warmest festival greetings to our fellow compatriots in China and the United States!

Over the past 74 years, under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, billions of Chinese people have forged ahead with fortitude, and embarked on a path of socialism with Chinese characteristics. We have created a miracle of rapid economic growth with hard work, a miracle of lasting social stability with unity, a miracle of poverty reduction with perseverance, and a miracle of peaceful rise with a great sense of responsibility. 

Today, 74 years on, we are advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts through a Chinese path to modernization. While Chinese modernization is conceived in China, it will bring opportunities to the whole world.

— It is the modernization of a huge population. Achieving modernization for more than 1.4 billion people is an unprecedented task, and requires arduous efforts. Pursuing high-quality development is our top priority, and reform and opening-up remains our fundamental national policy. Our focus is to be a better self. We have no intention to challenge, outcompete or displace anyone else.

— It is the modernization of common prosperity for all. We will both make the pie bigger and divide it more fairly. China’s middle-income group will exceed 800 million by 2035. Its market for health services is estimated to reach around 2.2 trillion dollars by 2030. And Chinese airlines will need 8,700 new aircraft by 2040…

It is also the modernization of peaceful development. We have put forward the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, offering China’s solution for addressing the deficit in development, overcoming security challenges and enhancing mutual learning between civilizations, and calling on countries to jointly build a community with a shared future for mankind.

This year, amid the tortuous global economic recovery, every country has its own problems to tackle. While facing some difficulties and challenges, the Chinese economy has been on an upward trajectory generally. Our GDP grew 5.5% in the first half of the year, outpacing most major economies. In the first eight months, investment in high-tech industries grew 11% year over year, and retail sales in accommodation, catering and other services increased 19%. Over 500 million Chinese went to the movies this summer alone. In recent months, China has rolled out new policies to reinvigorate consumption, boost the private sector and attract more foreign investment, which are gradually paying off.

Things are best appreciated when one takes a long-term view. The fundamentals sustaining China’s growth in the long run have not and will not change. Choosing China is to embrace opportunities and secure the future. In a globalized era, everyone is interconnected. All countries are in the same boat. The notion that other countries could economically collapse while one still thrives is utter fantasy. Pulling together is our only choice.  

Over the months, I have engaged extensively with friends old and new from various sectors. Here is my impression: while a lot has changed in China-U.S. relations, the fact that we are interdependent has not changed. We still share extensive common interests and important common responsibilities. The Earth is big enough for China and the United States to develop respectively and prosper together.

Nor has the international community’s expectation for a generally stable China-U.S. relationship changed. China and the United States are the two largest economies and nuclear-weapon states. Any conflict or confrontation between us would produce no winner, and would be the last thing the world wants to see. A “new Cold War” would only be a tragedy for the entire humanity.

To our encouragement, under the guidance of our leaders and with our joint efforts, the China-U.S. relationship has seen some positive signs of stabilizing. Progress has been made in enhancing dialogue and cooperation. In particular, the two sides have agreed to return to the Bali agenda, and implement the important common understanding reached between President Xi Jinping and President Biden…

Of course, we still face serious difficulties and grave challenges in the bilateral relationship, and there is still a long way to go to stabilize and improve our relations. The key is to find the right way for China and the United States to get along in the new era. The three principles outlined by President Xi Jinping, namely, mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, have pointed us in the right direction. 

Mutual respect is the prerequisite for our interactions. China does not interfere in U.S. domestic affairs and does not bet against the United States. In the same vein, we hope the United States will also respect our sovereignty and territorial integrity, properly handle important, sensitive issues such as the Taiwan question in line with the principles of the three joint communiques, and respect the Chinese people’s choice of development path and political system and right to a better life.

— Peaceful coexistence is the red line we must keep to. Any war, cold or hot, trade or technological, should be avoided. Sanctions on Chinese entities and individuals should be stopped.

— Win-win cooperation is the goal we should aim at. Let’s both take positive actions from now, starting with concrete, small steps that will benefit our peoples and help bring our relationship back to the right track… (all emphasis added)

Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for over 30 years. He is a teacher, writer, public speaker, and consultant on Africa. Mr. Freeman strongly believes that economic development is an essential human right. He is also the creator of the blog:  lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com.

The U.S. Betrays Its Heritage by Threatening World War III Against Russia and China

Ben Franklin, scientist, philosopher, and statesman, who helped establish the republican principles that were and are the foundation of the United States of America

February 4, 2022

Please read this article by historian Anton Chaitkin, U.S. Betrays Its Heritage by Threatening World War III Against Russia and China, from pressenza.com. Read what Presidents George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt, John Kennedy, and civil rights leader, Matlin Luther King said.

Mr. Chaitkin is a longtime colleague of mine who expresses the aspirations of many Americans, like me, who want to see the United States disseminate its profound founding principles, not provoke unnecessary war. We, the United States, at our core, are far superior to our current practice of resorting to war and sanctions as the primary means of conducting foreign policy.

“Americans who cherish our country’s legacy are horrified by our headlong rush to war. America at its best was the very motor of world progress, higher living standards and peace.

“That is our true national identity. We betray “the better angels of our nature” by making military threats against those who are advancing world powers, as we once were. We commit suicide when we dishonor historic agreements that keep the world safe from nuclear annihilation.”

Read the full article: U.S. Betrays Its Heritage by Threatening World War III Against Russia and China

Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for over 30 years. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com. Mr. Freeman’s stated personal mission is; to eliminate poverty and hunger in Africa by applying the scientific economic principles of Alexander Hamilton.

Ethiopia Election: A Vote for Peace, Unity, and Prosperity

Lawrence Freeman speaking with Dr. Birhanu Lenjiso of Prime Media

Below is a 30 minute interview with on the Ethiopian national elections conducted on June 21, 2021. It was conducted in the studio of Prime Media on the June 23rd, in Addis Ababa.

The Ethiopian people proved all the critics, pundits, Western media, and Western governments, especially the United States and Great Britain wrong in their predictions of violence and chaos for Ethiopia’s national elections. The Ethiopian people surprised even some government supporters with their orderly, calm, and peaceful manner in electing Prime Minister Ably Ahmed and the Prosperity Party.

Hours after my interview, former Nigeria President Olusegun Obasanjo, at a press conference in Addis Ababa, representing the African Union declared that the election was conducted in a “peaceful, orderly and credible manner.” Obasanjo echoed the observations made by the East African Standby Force in a press conference on Tuesday following the election. Both ESAF and AU has observers monitoring the election process.

Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for over 30 years. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com. Mr. Freeman’s stated personal mission is; to eliminate poverty and hunger in Africa by applying the scientific economic principles of Alexander Hamilton

In Celebration of Black History Month, Let Us All Emulate the Great Frederick Douglas

Happy Birthday, Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglas (1818-1895)

February 15, 2021

There is no better way to celebrate Black History Month than to to absorb the ideas of Frederick Douglas. I recommend you read this latest article written my friend, American historian, Nancy Spannaus-see link below: Happy Birthday, Frederick Douglas. I also suggest you read his wonderful autobiography: Life and Times of Frederick Douglas. 

Frederick Douglas believed in the U.S. Constitution and demanded that Americans and their leaders live up to its noble principles. That is something we should all aspire to. Douglas wrote: “Men talk of the Negro problem. There is no Negro problem. The problem is whether the American people have loyalty enough, honor enough, patriotism enough, to live up to their own Constitution.” Frederick Douglas did not advocate tearing down America, but rather, demanded that Americans live up to the principle embodied in the U.S. Constitution.

 

Happy Birthday, Frederick Douglass

 Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for over 30 years. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com

China’s Belt & Road Needed to Revitalize World Economy: CGTN

May 18, 2020

Below are excerpts from my article on the strategic role of China’s Belt and Road in today’s world economy, published by CGTN 

The global economic breakdown ignited by the COVID-19 pandemic entails China and its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) playing an important role in restoring health to the world economy. While Western nations are still struggling with COVID-19, and are months away from beginning to refurbish their economies, China has already started its recovery, following its earlier success in combating the coronavirus.

The collapse of nations to conditions resembling the Great Depression and the inability to contain the deadly virus have belied the alleged success of globalization. The underlying flaws of the deregulated post Bretton Woods financial system, which has become an international gambling casino to make fast money, are now nakedly revealed. Given the breakdown of the present global financial system, it is urgent that leading nations issue a call to convene a conference to initiate a New Bretton Woods system, which values human life over making money.

For civilization to progress, a new economic architecture dedicated to ending poverty, and promoting productive economic growth is compulsory. Without question, the United States and China will have to perform outsized roles in establishing a new paradigm of political-economic relationships among nations, notwithstanding current tensions.

Read the entire articleBelt and Road Needed to Revitalize World Economy

China’s Progress and ‘Belt and Road’: New Global Dynamic

“When China Eliminates Poverty in 2020, Beijing Will Have Proved That the Developing World Doesn’t Need US “Aid”

June 3, 2018

“No country in history has lifted as large a number of people out of poverty as China has done, beginning in the late 20th century. At the turn of the 1980s, over 88% of all Chinese were living in poverty according to the international definition of having an average daily income of $1.90 or less. Today, China’s poverty rate hovers around 2% of the entire population or 30 million people. This poverty is now entirely confined to rural areas. By contrast, in the United States, poverty while mostly in rural areas, is also spread among impoverished inner-cities…

“While some remain skeptical about China’s ability to eliminate poverty by the end of 2020, the record clearly shows that when it comes to tackling issues of extreme poverty in an extremely short period of time, China is not only able to achieve its goals but is able to do so in ways that put other countries to shame. While the poverty rate in the US has stagnated for decades, with the rate being 12.4% at the end of the 1970s with a slight increase to 13.7% at the end of the 1980s, China has dramatically gone from a state of near total poverty to the brink of eliminating all poverty in that same period.

“With China lifting an average of 13 million people out of poverty each year in the last five years, President Xi’s goal of progressively eliminating poverty for 10 million rural poor each year until poverty is fully eliminated at the turn of 2021, is ultimately a realistic goal, albeit one with seismic implications.”

continue reading

African Countries Meet On Using Yuan as Reserve Currency

May 30, 2018–A meeting of seventeen central bank and government officials from 14 countries in eastern and southern Africa met in Harare, Zimbabwe on May 29-30 to discuss the possibility of using the yuan as a reserve currency, Xinhua reported on May 29. The meeting was sponsored by the Macroeconomic and Financial Management Institute of Eastern and Southern Africa (MEFMI). They quote Gladys Siwela-Jadagu, spokesperson for MEFMI, saying that most MEFMI countries have received loans or grants from China and it would “make economic sense” to repay them in yuan. She said that the yuan has become a ‘common currency’ in trade with Africa.    Xinhua notes that China’s trade with South Africa surged by 14.7 percent on a yearly basis in the first four months this year

UN Official Lauds Belt and Road as `Grand Design for the Future’

May 29, 2018 — UN Under-Secretary Shamshad Akhtar, speaking to {China Daily} May 28, praised the Belt and Road Initiative of infrastructure great projects as “an initiative on a more integrated frame, [and] of a scale, that no one has talked about before.” Akhtar is executive secretary of the UN’s Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.

“China leads the regional cooperation and the integration of Asia, with its Belt and Road Initiative strengthening intra-and intercontinental ties,” she told {China Daily}, on the sidelines of the Shanghai Forum at Fudan University. “It’s a grand design. Moving the Belt and Road Initiative forward not only connects Asia internally, but bridges it closer to Europe and Africa.”

She said, “Over the years, China’s shift from quietly forging bilateral relationships, to building multilateral and broad.”-based diplomatic structure has underscored its commitment to deepening its footprint in regional cooperation and integration.