US needs to show sincerity at trade talks

Negotiators from China and the United States resumed their trade talks in Shanghai on Tuesday following the meeting between President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Donald Trump on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Osaka in June.

This is also the first time the two sides are holding the trade talks outside their capital cities. But then Shanghai has a special place in the history of China-US relations.

In 1972, when US President Richard Nixon paid an ice-breaking visit to China, the two sides issued the Shanghai Communiqué in the hope of normalizing bilateral ties after more than two decades of estrangement.

Today, in Shanghai, US negotiators need to once again demonstrate the same sincerity and, more importantly, have reasonable expectations from the resumed trade talks, in order to normalize bilateral trade relations.

For more than a year, China and the US, in a bid to settle their trade disputes, have held 11 rounds of high-level talks, during which Beijing has demonstrated its utmost sincerity to overcome the differences and reach an agreement acceptable to both sides.

However, some US trade hawks have chosen to turn a blind eye to China's legitimate interests and put forward unrealistic demands that infringe upon China's sovereignty and core interests. China-bashers such as former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon even tried to ride the wave of the tariff war to hype up anti-China sentiment and contain China's development. These provocative actions ultimately led to an impasse in dialogue.

In the ongoing round of trade talks, the US needs to engage in consultations on the basis of equality if it wants to reach a trade deal. If Washington still holds the illusion that Beijing will somehow cave in and compromise on issues concerning sovereignty and related core interests to reach a deal, then no deal can be reached. China will always find a way to withstand any pressure.

The trade cooperation between China and the US is mutually beneficial. And by waging a tariff war against China, the US is hurting its own economy and people. According to a study conducted by economists from the New York Federal Reserve and Princeton and Columbia universities, the tariff war cost US companies and consumers $4.4 billion a month in 2018.

Moreover, as trade disputes linger, the world economy is suffering as well. Morgan Stanley's chief economist Chetan Ahya has said: "As uncertainty around trade policy is unresolved, the impact on the growth outlook is becoming more pronounced."

For the benefit of both sides and the world at large, China and the US need to take the resumed talks forward by accommodating each other's core interests, so as to reach a deal early.

Forty-seven years ago, the Shanghai Communiqué showed the courage of Chinese and US leaders in bridging the ideological gap to come together for not only their own interests but also to ease tensions across the world. It is hoped that this time, the two sides' trade negotiators can pluck up some courage and work together for sturdier and more fruitful bilateral trade ties which will benefit the entire world.

Xinhua

The views don't necessarily represent those of China Daily.