Nigeria Times

By Zhong Sheng, People’s Daily

Recently, at the invitation of U.S. President Joe Biden, Chinese President Xi Jinping flew across the Pacific Ocean on a trip to San Francisco. At the century-old Filoli Estate, Xi held a meeting with Biden to find the right way for China and the United States to get along with each other.

At this critical juncture of history, the San Francisco meeting between the Chinese and U.S. presidents achieved significant outcomes, making a key step to steer China-U.S. relations toward a healthy, stable and sustainable direction.

Xi pointed out that China and the United States should jointly develop a right perception, manage disagreements effectively, advance mutually beneficial cooperation, shoulder responsibilities as major countries, and promote people-to-people exchanges. This has built together five pillars for China-U.S. relations and established the “San Francisco vision” oriented toward the future.

To jointly develop a right perception comes first in the five pillars, which mirrors Xi’s profound thinking on the real challenges and future direction of China-U.S. relations.

“I have always had one question on my mind: How to steer the giant ship of China-U.S. relations clear of hidden rocks and shoals, navigate it through storms and waves without getting disoriented, losing speed or even having a collision?” Xi said at a welcome dinner by friendly organizations in the United States.

“In this respect, the number one question for us is: are we adversaries, or partners? This is the fundamental and overarching issue,” said Xi.

Xi’s important remarks made at the welcoming dinner were thought-provoking. China and the United States are two major countries with extensive common interests and bear important responsibilities for world and regional peace, stability, and prosperity. For China and the United States, turning their back on each other is not an option. It is unrealistic for one side to remodel the other, and conflict and confrontation has unbearable consequences for both sides.

In recent years, China-U.S. relations have encountered challenges and difficulties. The root cause is U.S. misperception toward China and the China-U.S. ties.

Some people in the United States hold onto the Cold War mentality and zero-sum game mindset, seeing China as a primary competitor and the most consequential geopolitical challenge, which severely distorts the perception of China. It will only lead to misinformed policymaking, misguided actions, and unwanted results.

To find the right way to get along with each other, China and the United States need to jointly develop a right perception. Only by doing so can the foundation for mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation be laid.

Jointly developing a right perception means the two countries must accurately understand each other’s strategic intentions.

Xi pointed out that China’s development is driven by its inherent logic and dynamics. China is promoting the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts through Chinese modernization. It will not take the old path of colonization and plundering, or the wrong path of seeking hegemony with growing strength. It does not export its ideology. It has no plan to surpass or unseat the United States. Likewise, the United States should not scheme to suppress and contain China.

China is consistently committed to having a stable, healthy and sustainable relationship with the United States. China never bets against the United States, and never interferes in its internal affairs. China has no intention to challenge the United States or to unseat it. Instead, China will be glad to see a confident, open, ever-growing and prosperous United States. Likewise, the United States should not bet against China, or interfere in China’s internal affairs. It should instead welcome a peaceful, stable and prosperous China.

In recent years, some people in the United States, out of their strategic anxieties, have seriously misjudged and deliberately distorted China’s strategic intentions. They stubbornly view China, which is committed to peaceful development, as a threat and thus play a zero-sum game against it. They are going further down the wrong path.

To prevent the giant ship of China-U.S. relations from getting disoriented, losing speed or having a collision, such misperception toward China must be eliminated first.

Jointly developing a right perception means the two countries must practically respect each other’s legitimate rights and interests. China hopes to see win-win cooperation with the United States. At the same time, China has interests that must be safeguarded, principles that must be upheld, and red lines that must not be crossed.

Over the past decades, the relationship between China and the United States has experienced ups and downs, and the U.S. side should have a clear understanding of this.

Taiwan question remains the most important and most sensitive issue in China-U.S. relations. The U.S. side should take real actions to honor its commitment of not supporting “Taiwan independence,” stop arming Taiwan, and support China’s peaceful reunification. China will realize reunification, and this is unstoppable.

U.S. actions against China regarding export control, investment screening and unilateral sanctions seriously hurt China’s legitimate interests, and go against the U.S. promise of not seeking to contain or suppress China’s development.

Development of China is innovation-driven. Stifling China’s technological progress is nothing but a move to contain China’s high-quality development and deprive the Chinese people of their right to development. It is important that the U.S. side take China’s concerns seriously and adopt tangible steps to lift its unilateral sanctions so as to provide an equal, fair and nondiscriminatory environment for Chinese businesses.

The world is developing, and the times are changing. China and the United States cannot repeat the outdated history of major-country confrontation. Instead, the two countries should be partners that respect each other, coexist in peace, and work together for mutual benefit. This is the right choice for the future.

In recent years, China-U.S. relations have been at a low ebb, leading to an increase in discussions about the “Thucydides trap” in the international community. The crux of the “Thucydides trap” lies in a cognitive error rather than objective conflicts of interest.

Xi once pointed out that there is no such thing as the so-called Thucydides trap in the world. But should major countries time and again make the mistakes of strategic miscalculation, they might create such traps for themselves, he explained.

This time in San Francisco, he once again stressed that the world is big enough to accommodate both countries, and China is ready to be a partner and friend of the United States.

What he said demonstrated profound wisdom in grasping the development of China-U.S. relations while following the logic of historical progress and the trend of the times, and showcased a broad-mindedness in planning the development of China-U.S. relations at the level of the future of humanity and Planet Earth.

China and the United States, the largest developing country and the largest developed country, must handle their relations well.

Both sides should take the San Francisco meeting as a new starting point to truly implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, enhance mutual understanding through communication and dialogue, eliminate biases and misjudgments by developing a right perception, and jointly promote the continuous improvement and development of China-U.S. relations.

(Zhong Sheng is a pen name often used by People’s Daily to express its views on foreign policy and international affairs.)

By Wang Ying

Chinese manufacturers of service robots are receiving orders from around the world, according to a report by Nikkei Asia.

The Shenzhen-based tech firm Pudu Robotics, founded in 2016, reported a revenue of $100 million in 2022.

KEENON Robotics Co., Ltd., headquartered in Shanghai, is also preparing to accelerate its overseas expansion. By the end of 2022, the company had sold approximately 35,000 robots, with nearly 10,000 of them sold to destinations outside China.

In recent years, the Chinese robotics industry has experienced rapid development, with the service robot sector maintaining a fast growth rate.

Statistics show that in 2022, the operating revenue of the Chinese robotics industry exceeded 170 billion yuan ($23.94 billion), making China the world’s largest robotics market.

According to data released by the International Federation of Robotics, the Chinese robotics industry maintained steady growth in the first half of 2023. A total of 3.53 million sets of service robots were produced, representing a year-on-year growth of 9.6 percent.

In recent years, China has introduced a series of policies to support the development of the robotics industry. According to an outline for the development of the robotics industry during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), China plans to build itself into a global source of innovation in robotics technology, a hub for high-end manufacturing, and a leading center for integrated robotics applications by 2025.

Earlier this year, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Education, and 15 other departments jointly issued an action plan on “robotics+” that aims to expand the use of robotics. The action plan is expected to further implement the goal of doubling China’s manufacturing robot density by 2025 compared with that of 2020, and significantly increasing the use of service and special robots.

Service robots are an important category of robot products. They can replace human labor in performing certain daily tasks, improve life quality for consumers and reduce manual labor input. Based on specific needs, service robots can operate autonomously with minimal human intervention or be remotely controlled by human operators.

Service robots can provide assistance in various fields and scenarios, including but not limited to the food and beverage industry, healthcare, hospitality, building services, and logistics. They can perform tasks such as greeting guests, meal deliveries, express parcel deliveries, cleaning, and providing medical assistance.

Jiao Ziyuan, a researcher at the Beijing Institute for General Artificial Intelligence, told People’s Daily that currently, service robots developed and produced in China are mainly used for food delivery, cleaning, and medical assistance. The overall domestic market is showing a positive trend, with a high rate of localization and an increasingly advanced level of technology.

This is attributed to the significant breakthroughs made by China in cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence speech recognition and image recognition, Jiao explained.

Chinese manufacturers of service robots are accelerating their expansion into the global market. According to a report released by International Data Corporation in July this year, “going global” became an important source of growth for most manufacturers in 2022 because of the low market penetration, high labor costs, and higher profit margins for products sold overseas.

The report said the income made overseas by many manufacturers was on par with or even significantly higher than their revenue in the Chinese market. In 2022, Chinese manufacturers of commercial service robot generated nearly $200 million in revenue from overseas markets, representing a year-on-year growth of 103.4 percent.

Jiao said that China’s service robots are leading in technology, price, and service. In terms of technology, China applies advanced artificial intelligence technology to service robots, resulting in higher stability and intelligence. In terms of price, China has a relatively complete industrial chain related to robots, which leads to higher cost-effectiveness. In terms of service, Chinese manufacturers can provide customized services based on different needs.

However, Chinese manufacturers of service robots, facing increasingly fierce competition in the international market, still need to continuously improve their technological and innovative capabilities, pay attention to cultural differences between China and foreign countries, comply with regulations and standards in various countries, provide excellent after-sales service and technical support, continuously optimize the industrial chain, and maintain their advantage in cost control.

Jiao pointed out that in the future, humanoid robots will be one of the mainstream directions for the development of service robots. Humanoid robots can better adapt to real-life scenarios, enabling service robots to transition from specialized to general-purpose. For manufacturers, strengthening the technological research and development of humanoid robots and reducing costs may be an important direction in the future.

By Hai Ya

Recently, my novelette “The Space-Time Painter” won the Hugo Award for Best Novelette, which was announced at the 2023 World Science Fiction Convention in Chengdu, southwest China’s Sichuan province. It was a great encouragement to me to receive the trophy from my predecessor Liu Cixin.

My steps along the path of science fiction creation are fueled by a deep passion inside. When I was a child, I liked to visit the Xinhua Bookstore near my home, where I stumbled upon reading sci-fi works including Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, The Mysterious Island, and Chinese work Dense Fog over the Old Gorge.

During my middle school years, I consciously looked for sci-fi novels to read, and sci-fi magazines were always shared by my classmates then. This reading environment further fueled my love for science fiction.

The allure of science fiction lies in its ability to create worlds different from reality through scientific imagination, allowing people to experience the wonders of fantasy.

For sci-fi enthusiasts, writing their own stories seems a natural next step. As you repeatedly soar through the wonders crafted in novels, there comes a day when you want to create your own literary universe with your pen.

A common challenge in sci-fi creation is that authors often use lengthy and esoteric terms to explain the sci-fi settings. This not only raises the barrier to reading acceptance but also disrupts the narrative flow, making it difficult to gain widespread readership and popularity.

On the contrary, Liu Cixin’s works such as The Three-Body Problem and The Devourer stand out with prominent sci-fi elements while telling intricate and captivating stories that provoke deep thoughts. These works have inspired me to believe that storytelling is paramount in science fiction, whether it is hard or soft sci-fi.

In my creative work, I always adhere to the principle of putting the story first and pay particular attention to whether the sci-fi elements can be easily comprehended by readers. Gradually, I have learned to naturally introduce sci-fi settings through plot evolution, revealing the sci-fi world to the readers step by step.

The opening of my work The Space-Time Painter doesn’t have many sci-fi elements but rather resembles a mystery story. As the story unfolds, the sci-fi settings start to emerge. Judging from the results, this creative approach has made my works beloved by more readers.

After I won the Hugo Award, many people asked me where the inspiration for the innovative setting in The Space-Time Painter came from, which combines science fiction and traditional culture.

The direct inspiration came from the ancient painting A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains by Wang Ximeng of China’s Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). The renowned artist left behind this masterpiece, but only sparse biographical details about him exist in historical records, leaving ample space for literary imagination.

As a child, I repeatedly read an accessible edition of Zizhi Tongjian (Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance), whose gripping contents have stuck with me over the years, leaving me yearning for more of the unfinished story threads. Just one historical detail, when unfolded, can be turned into an outstanding work of literature. My series of historical science fiction exactly originated from such unfinished story threads in history.

Every writer’s creation has historical and cultural imprints, and the science fiction sector is no exception. Chinese civilization has a long and continuous history, and the fine traditional Chinese culture serves as a vast “database” for literature creation. By drawing from and innovatively transforming this cultural heritage, new literary works, films, television programs, tourism projects, and cultural and creative products can be continuously produced.

In China today, more and more creators are actively engaging in the creative transformation and innovative development of China’s fine traditional culture. Seeking inspiration and materials from our ancient civilization has become a consensus among creators.

For me, the combination of science fiction and traditional culture is not a deliberate choice but a natural progression. I believe that even without The Space-Time Painter, other writers would make the same choice.

Science fiction can only bloom in the spring of science and technology. No matter what kind of science fiction, it originates from science. With the continuous advancement of science and technology and the constant breakthroughs being made, people are filled with longing and curiosity for science. This attracts them to read sci-fi works and thus brings vitality to the industry. It can be said that the prosperity of science and technology in China today is the biggest engine driving sci-fi creation.

As a financial practitioner, I often think about the future of China’s science fiction from an industrial perspective, hoping that the industry can truly thrive.

I believe that to achieve this vision, a more complete industrial chain is needed to address the shortcomings in the development of the industry. At the same time, key aspects such as film and television adaptations need to be well managed to play a leading role.

For example, the successes of excellent film and television works such as The Wandering Earth, Moon Man and The Three-Body Problem have had a significant impact on the overall improvement of the sci-fi industry.

On one hand, they have made sci-fi works widely spread and stimulated market demand. On the other hand, they have refined the division of labor in the industry, allowing professionals to do their specialized work, thereby solidifying the cultural industrial system and foundation of the industry.

Developing the sci-fi industry is not a short-term task; it requires the joint and synergetic efforts of various aspects such as literary creation, copyright trading, and film and television adaptations.

While attending the World Science Fiction Convention, I found that most foreign sci-fi fans and authors are seniors, but in China, we have a vibrant community of young sci-fi enthusiasts and creators. We are seeing an increasing number of teenagers and even younger individuals who are passionate about science fiction. This signifies a promising future for Chinese science fiction.

As long as we put in sincere efforts and dedication, we can create rich and impactful Chinese science fiction that moves the world.

(Hai Ya is a Chinese science fiction writer. The article is compiled by People’s Daily journalist Zhang Mingse based on an interview with Hai Ya.)

By He Yin, People’s Daily

“For any great cause to succeed, it must take root in the people, gain strength from the people, and be accomplished by the people. Growing China-U.S. friendship is such a great cause,” said Chinese President Xi Jinping when delivering a speech at a welcome dinner hosted by friendly organizations in the United States on Nov. 15, local time.

At the welcome dinner, Xi met with friends from all walks of life in the United States to renew friendship, charting the course and gathering strength for advancing the cause of China-U.S. friendship.

This welcome dinner was a gathering connecting history and the future. Thirty-eight years ago, Xi, then Party chief of Zhengding county in north China’s Hebei province, visited the United States for the first time. The visit started from San Francisco.

In his speech this time, he profoundly summarized the important role played by people in advancing the China-U.S. friendship. He stressed that China is ready to be a partner and friend of the United States, and the fundamental principles that China follows in handling China-U.S. relations are mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation.

No matter how the global landscape evolves, the historical trend of peaceful coexistence between China and the United States will not change. The ultimate wish of the two peoples for exchanges and cooperation will not change. The expectations of the whole world for a steadily growing China-U.S. relationship will not change.

Participants to the welcome dinner hailed Xi for his sincere and profound remarks, which they believe have sent a positive signal to the world that China is willing to strengthen communication and cooperation with the United States.

The foundation of China-U.S. relations was laid by the two peoples. The door of China-U.S. relations was opened by the two peoples.

During World War II, the two countries fought side by side for peace and justice. The Chinese people still remember that a group of American volunteers, known as the Flying Tigers, went to the battlefield in China. They not only engaged in direct combats fighting Japanese aggressors, but also created “The Hump” airlift to transport much-needed supplies to China. The American people, on their part, always remember the Chinese who risked their lives to save American pilots.

For 22 years, there were estrangement and antagonism between the two countries. But the trend of the times brought them together, converging interests enabled them to rise above differences, and the people’s longing broke the ice between the two countries.

In his speech, Xi mentioned a recent trip to China by Flying Tigers veterans, during which they visited the Great Wall and were warmly received by the Chinese people. He also reviewed the 1971 visit by the U.S. table tennis team to Beijing – a small ball moved the globe. To pass on the China-U.S. friendship from generation to generation is a common aspiration of friendly people in both countries.

The stories of China-U.S. relations are written by the two peoples, which promoted the development of China-U.S. ties. People-to-people relations underpin state-to-state relations.

Xi’s enduring friendship with his American friends in Muscatine, Iowa is heartwarming. From first staying with them during his inaugural visit to the United States, to revisiting Muscatine years later, and to continuing to value those bonds today, his cherished ties with these old friends remain touching.

In the past a few months, Xi in has respectively met in Beijing with former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Bill Gates, and California Governor Gavin Newsom.

He sent a congratulatory letter to the “Bond with Kuliang: 2023 China-U.S. People-to-People Friendship Forum,” replied to a letter from the U.S.-China Youth and Student Exchange Association and friendly personages from all walks of life in the U.S. state of Washington, and replied to a letter from Chairman of the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation and Flying Tigers veterans. He also sent a message to the fifth China-U.S. Sister Cities Conference and replied to a letter from Matias Tarnopolsky, president and CEO of the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Hoping the friendship between the two peoples to grow better, Xi personally cares for and promotes people-to-people exchanges and subnational cooperation between the two countries. Friendly personages in the United States said that Xi has brought a new atmosphere as U.S.-China relations hit a low, and has brought the hearts of the two peoples closer.

The future of China-U.S. relations will be created by the two peoples, and the two peoples will renew the chapters of friendship in the new era.

The more difficulties there are, the greater the need for China and the United States to forge a closer bond between the two peoples and to open their hearts to each other, and more people need to speak up for the relationship. It is the convergence of many streams of goodwill and friendship that has created a strong current surging across the vast Pacific Ocean; it is the reaching out to each other by the two peoples that has time and again brought China-U.S. relations from a low ebb back onto the right track.

Xi stressed that the hope of the China-U.S. relationship lies in the people, its foundation is in their societies, its future depends on the youth, and its vitality comes from exchanges at subnational levels.

He announced that to increase exchanges between the two peoples, especially between the youth, China is ready to invite 50,000 young Americans to China on exchange and study programs in the next five years. This has been warmly welcomed by U.S. friendly organizations.

The Chinese and U.S. Presidents have reached important consensus during their meeting in San Fransisco. The two countries will roll out more measures to facilitate travels and promote people-to-people exchanges, including increasing direct passenger flights, holding a high-level dialogue on tourism, and streamlining visa application procedures. The two peoples will make more visits, contacts and exchanges and write new stories of friendship in the new era.

San Francisco has borne witness to exchanges between the Chinese and American peoples for over a century, and also to the efforts made by China and the United States to open up new prospects.

To galvanize the Chinese and American peoples into a strong force to renew China-U.S. friendship, advance China-U.S. relations, and make even greater contributions to world peace and development – this is not only a responsibility that China and the United States should fulfill as major countries, but also the common aspiration of all countries.

By He Yin, People’s Daily

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a written speech at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit in San Francisco on Nov. 16. He reviewed the remarkable journey of Asia-Pacific cooperation, summarized the historical experience of Asia-Pacific development, and answered a new question of the times－where will Asia-Pacific cooperation be headed in the next 30 years.

Xi’s remarks mirrored China’s firm confidence in promoting high-quality economic development and bringing new impetus and opportunities to the world with China’s new development, charting the course and injecting momentum for the Asia Pacific region to rise up to the challenges of the times and write new chapters of cooperation.

APEC’s birth and growth followed the trend toward peace and development. Three decades ago, where humanity should be headed in the post-Cold War era was the question of the world, of history and of the times in front of Asia-Pacific leaders. In response, they convened the inaugural APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting.

They agreed unanimously to rise above the outdated mentality of bloc confrontation and zero-sum game, deepen economic cooperation and integration in the region, and build a dynamic, harmonious and prosperous Asia-Pacific community.

This major decision enabled Asia-Pacific development and economic globalization to embark on a fast track of growth, turning the region into a powerhouse for world economic growth, an anchor of stability for global development, and a pacesetter for international cooperation.

The world has entered a new period of turbulence and change. The momentum of world economic growth is sluggish. Destabilizing, uncertain and unpredictable factors are increasing.

To find the direction of future Asia-Pacific cooperation, regional countries need to draw wisdom from history, stay true to their original aspiration, seize the opportunities, and ride the momentum.

With a deep understanding of the development trend in the Asia-Pacific region and the progress of the times, Xi summarized the profound insights brought by the remarkable journey of Asia-Pacific cooperation.

He stressed that openness and inclusiveness are the defining feature of Asia-Pacific cooperation, development for all is the overarching goal of Asia-Pacific cooperation, and seeking common ground while shelving differences is the best practice of Asia-Pacific cooperation.

Development in the Asia-Pacific region has been achieved not through provoking antagonism and confrontation, pursuing a beggar-thy-neighbor policy, or erecting high fences around a small yard, but by staying open and inclusive and drawing on each other’s strengths.

Development is an eternal pursuit of the region. Regional countries have stayed focused on development and continually deepened economic and technical cooperation, thus strengthening the ability of developing members to achieve self-development.

Over the past three decades, per capita income in the Asia-Pacific has more than quadrupled, and one billion people have been lifted out of poverty. This is an important contribution to human progress and global sustainable development.

Economies in the region have different histories and cultures and are in different stages of development. Forcing uniformity will not advance cooperation in the region; seeking common ground while shelving differences is the right way forward. This can enable regional countries to turn diversity in membership into momentum for cooperation and make collective progress through tapping into complementarity.

At present, the Asia-Pacific region is seeing both new opportunities for development as well as new challenges and risks.

Xi pointed out that regional countries should stay committed to APEC’s founding mission, never forget their mission bestowed by history, and move to relaunch Asia-Pacific cooperation.

Peace is an important prerequisite for development. The Asia-Pacific region cannot and should not be an arena for geopolitical rivalry, still less should it be plunged into a new cold war or camp-based confrontation. This is a common aspiration of all parties in the region.

The story of Asia-Pacific prosperity and development shows that development is only possible with cooperation, absence of cooperation is the biggest risk, and that decoupling and supply-chain disruption are not in anyone’s interests. To relaunch Asia-Pacific cooperation, it is important to remain committed to open regionalism and build an open Asia-Pacific economy featuring win-win cooperation.

Facing a new wave of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, regional countries should move along with the trend to promote transition to digital, smart and green development. They should jointly boost innovation and market application of scientific and technological advances, and push forward full integration of digital and physical economies.

They should jointly improve global governance of science and technology, bolster support for green and digital transition and sustainable development through innovation, and build an open, fair, just and non-discriminatory environment for the development of science and technology.

China is a member of the Asia-Pacific family. The Chinese economy and the Asia-Pacific economy are interdependent and deeply integrated with each other.

China enjoys distinct strengths such as a socialist market economy in systemic terms, a supersize market in terms of demand, a full-fledged industrial system in terms of supply, and abundant, high-caliber labor forces and entrepreneurs in terms of human resources. China’s economic development is self-generative, resilient and has many potentials.

China has the confidence in, and even more capability of achieving long-term and stable growth, and through its development it will continue to provide the world with new growth momentum and opportunities. China is committed to applying the new development philosophy, and it unswervingly advances high-standard opening up, fosters a market-oriented, law-based and world-class business environment and pursues high-quality development.

China is now advancing the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts by pursuing Chinese modernization, and the whole of more than 1.4 billion Chinese people will live better lives. For the world, this means a broader market and unprecedented cooperation opportunities. It will also instill strong impetus in the global modernization endeavor.

The APEC Putrajaya Vision explicitly lays out its vision for an Asia-Pacific community by 2040. Asia-Pacific countries should stay committed to APEC’s founding mission, never forget their mission bestowed by history, uphold openness, inclusiveness and common development, and seek common ground while shelving differences, to march toward the goal of building an Asia-Pacific community with a shared future.

By Zhong Sheng, People’s Daily

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with U.S. President Joe Biden at Filoli Estate, San Francisco on Nov. 15, local time. It was a strategically significant and far-reaching meeting of the two heads of state.

Xi and Biden had an exchange of views on strategic and overarching issues critical to the direction of China-U.S. relations and on major issues affecting world peace and development.

Xi gave a comprehensive and authoritative presentation on China’s position on stabilizing and improving China-U.S. relations, stressing the importance of making the right choice for history, finding the right way to get along and fostering a San Francisco vision for the relations.

The meeting is significant for enhancing trust, removing suspicion, managing differences and expanding cooperation between China and the United States. It is also significant for injecting certainty and stability into a world of turbulence and transformation.

China and the United States are the world’s top two economies. Are China and the United States partners or rivals? Should they engage in mutually beneficial cooperation or antagonism and confrontation? This is a fundamental question on which disastrous mistakes must be avoided.

If one sees the other side as a primary competitor, the most consequential geopolitical challenge and a pacing threat, it will only lead to misinformed policy making, misguided actions, and unwanted results.

For China and the United States, turning their back on each other is not an option, Xi noted, stressing it is unrealistic for one side to remodel the other, and conflict and confrontation has unbearable consequences for both sides.

Major-country competition cannot solve the problems facing China and the United States or the world, he continued, noting that the world is big enough to accommodate both countries, and one country’s success is an opportunity for the other.

China hopes that the two countries could be partners, perceiving and envisioning China-U.S. relations from the perspective of the future of humanity and Planet Earth. This fully demonstrated China’s major country responsibility for history, people and the world.

The fundamental principles that China follows in handling China-U.S. relations are mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, which are the lessons learned from 50 years of China-U.S. relations and the conflicts between major countries in history. They should be the direction of joint efforts between the two countries.

Just as mutual respect is a basic code of behavior for individuals, it is fundamental for China-U.S. relations. The two countries’ paths are different, but both are the choice by their peoples, and both lead to the realization of the common values of humanity. They should be both respected.

Peaceful coexistence is a basic norm for international relations, and is even more of a baseline that China and the United States should hold on to as two major countries.

China never bets against the United States, and never interferes in its internal affairs. China has no intention to challenge the United States or to unseat it. Instead, it will be glad to see a confident, open, ever-growing and prosperous United States.

Likewise, the United States should not bet against China, or interfere in China’s internal affairs. It should instead welcome a peaceful, stable and prosperous China.

Win-win cooperation is the trend of the times, and it is also an inherent property of China-U.S. relations.

China is pursuing high-quality development, and the United States is revitalizing its economy. There is plenty of room for their cooperation, and they are fully able to help each other succeed and achieve win-win outcomes. They should make the cooperation list longer and the pie of cooperation bigger.

Recently, the two countries have been actively implementing the consensus reached by the two heads of state in Bali, Indonesia, creating conditions for fostering a San Francisco vision for the relations.

During his meeting with Biden this time in San Francisco, Xi said that China and the United States should jointly develop a right perception, jointly manage disagreements effectively, jointly advance mutually beneficial cooperation, jointly shoulder responsibilities as major countries, and jointly promote people-to-people exchanges.

Through joint efforts in these five areas, five pillars can be put in place for China-U.S. relations to grow steadily and a new vision is fostered for China-U.S. relations going into the future.

The summit meeting reached more than 20 deliverables in such areas as political affairs and foreign policy, people-to-people exchange, global governance, and military and security.

On principles guiding the China-U.S. relations, the two presidents endorsed the efforts of their respective diplomatic teams to discuss principles related to China-U.S. relations since the Bali meeting and the common understandings arising from those discussions.

They stressed the importance of all countries treating each other with respect and finding a way to live alongside each other peacefully, and of maintaining open lines of communication, preventing conflict, upholding the United Nations Charter, cooperating in areas of shared interest, and responsibly managing competitive aspects of the relationship.

These seven points of common understanding are very important in that they provide a solid foundation for deeper discussions going forward. They are further proof of the broad common interests of China and the United States and the mutually beneficial nature of China-U.S. relations. They demonstrate that dialogue and cooperation is the only right choice for the two countries.

China and the United States are different in history, culture and social system, and how to deal with these differences is an important issue that both sides always need to address.

China is committed to having a stable, healthy and sustainable relationship with the United States. At the same time, China has legitimate interests that must be safeguarded, principles and positions that must be upheld, and red lines that must not be crossed.

If the U.S. side is bent on encircling and containing China under the pretext of competition, China will firmly uphold its sovereignty, security and development interests.

The Taiwan question remains the most important and most sensitive issue in China-U.S. relations. China urges the United States to honor the one-China principle, oppose “Taiwan independence,” stop arming Taiwan, stop interfering in China’s internal affairs, and support China’s peaceful reunification. China will realize reunification, and this is unstoppable.

U.S. attempts to curb or suppress China on economy, trade and technology are creating risks instead of “de-risking.” These misguided actions, and the ensuing uncertainty for China-U.S. relations, have become the biggest risk.

Stifling China’s technological progress is nothing but a move to curb China’s high-quality development and deprive the Chinese people of their right to development. China will not accept that and such a move will not succeed.

China’s development and growing strength, powered by strong internal drivers and its own inherent logic, will not be stopped by external forces. It is important that the U.S. side take China’s concerns seriously, lift unilateral sanctions, and provide an equal, fair, and nondiscriminatory environment for Chinese businesses.

A stabilizing and improving China-U.S. relationship is in the fundamental interests of the two countries and the common aspiration of the international community. Under the stewardship of the two presidents, the giant ship of China-U.S. relations has navigated hidden rocks and dangerous shoals.

The journey from Bali to San Francisco has not been an easy one. However, San Francisco should not be the finish line; it should be a new starting point. From San Francisco onward, the two sides should foster a new vision, further consolidate the foundation of their relations, build pillars for peaceful coexistence, and move their relationship in the direction of healthy, stable and sustainable development.

(Zhong Sheng is a pen name often used by People’s Daily to express its views on foreign policy and international affairs.)