Opinion | US high-level visits raise hope for China-US ties: Schumer's meeting with Xi tops them all

By Augustus K. Yeung

INTRODUCTION

Keeping counts of the White House officials and US Senators and leaders from both Republicans and Democrats as the current visitors to Beijing, is like collecting rare stamps for a connoisseur-collector, or dancing to the tune of the Hungarian Rapsody.

The waltz music started in Washington, and now it is echoing harmoniously in Beijing with Chuck Schumer candidly and peacefully meeting the Chinese President. 

The Washington-initiated peace process, beginning in June with Anthony Blinken, the US Secretary of State, and now in early October, the powerful US Senate leader Chuck Schumer and his 6-member senate delegation are meeting now in a rare moment with Wang Yi, the Chinese Foreign Minister, and finally President Xi Jinping, the leader of the CPC, the world's largest political party. 

The sheer magnitude, scale and size provides great political significance, which is beyond measure. And it has far-reaching implications for US-China bilateral ties, and the world!

Do all these positive signs signal the smooth road to a Biden-Xi summits in the APEC meeting in San Francisco in November? 

Read the latest editorial, China Daily below, and you will get a better understanding of how the Chinese side views and values relations with the United States.

China Daily: A bipartisan group of six US senators, three Democrats and three Republicans, is visiting China in what some observers say is a sign of improving bilateral relations.

"It may be too early to say the strained Sino-US relationship is improving. But if the ongoing visit proceeds well – perhaps with the delegates meeting senior Chinese leaders – it may pave the way for the much-needed improvement – ideally a widely expected meeting between Chinese and US leaders in San Francisco on the sidelines of the APEC meeting…"

Led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the congressional delegation will visit multiple Chinese cities and meeting with government and business leaders. No matter how the trip ends – it no doubt will "continue to a more objective understanding of China in the US Congress", the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced. 

After all, seeing what is happening here with their own eyes, comparing notes face-to-face with real people – running business, government institutions and the country – may help the US senators better understand the country – they have labeled their "No 1 rival".

US politicians may not entertain China's complaint – that their policy choices vis-à-vis China are too often driven by misperceptions and distortions. The real China is different from what they frequently berate and act against on Capitol Hill. A short trip like this may not suffice to remove every misgiving, but it surely will be conducive to reducing some of the misconceptions.

Senator Schumer has said: "Members of Congress have their finger on the pulse of what the American people are feeling…I want to hear from the Chinese exactly what vexes them about the US, just as I think they should hear what vexes us about China."

It always helps to hear from both sides. And the US lawmakers will gain important firsthand knowledge – about what the Chinese people are feeling right now. This could help make informed decisions – about the two countries' relations in terms of lawmaking. For that reason alone, Senator Schumer was right – to say the visit "is certainly worth trying".

This might not be the "propitious moment" Senator Schumer had described. But this may be a moment when people-to-people communication at all levels is badly needed – for stabilizing the China-US relationship. (Source: China Daily/MDT)

CONCLUSION

President Xi's decision to meet Senator Chuck Schumer has disappointed "analysts", but pleasantly surprised experts and observers. This final and highest level visit should result in the Biden-Xi summit in San Francisco.

You should see how Xi held the hand of Schumer. The handshake was firm, sincere and prolonged; you can see and feel the current passing through the party leaders of two great nations.

Sino-US relations have been set in motion much like a rollercoaster. In the past few years, thanks to Donald Trump, the former president and Mike Pompeo, the Secretary of State – who was just as pugnacious and pushy as Trump.

What Donald did to stir up feelings of racial hatred was one thing, and the degradation of US society is the result of a panoramic picture of Americans in pain and terror is another. American leaders have long neglected the nation and its poor people – for decades with the United States sleepwalking into hegemony – starting first in Asia, then the Middle East…

There was a time when the world loved the Americans who had been visiting countries, interacting with ordinary people, teaching them American English etc., until the warmongers began to bear their ugly faces, bullying developing countries, interfering, and trying regimes changes. 

Consider the situation in Vietnam. President John F. Kennedy was displeased with the "authoritarian" Nguyen brothers.  He ordered the CIA to gun down the younger brother. And that was the beginning of the end of good American influence. 

And then, the Americans invented the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, an excuse that was used to accuse the communist Vietnamese regime, triggering the Vietnam War – in which tens of thousands of young American soldiers were wounded and killed, resulting in the greatest American tragedy!

One can see American leaders have had been neglecting societal needs, not to mention abusing the human rights of other countries such Chile, whose democratically elected President Allende was gunned down in a CIA-led coup…

A rising China – with Chinese characteristics – becomes another scapegoat – supposedly on grounds of communist ideology. It's a convenient way for politicians to shift the focus (US societal deprivation) to China and the Asian Americans. 

With sustained bilateral people-to-people visits and improved ties, America should stop foreign interference and intervention, and resort to multilateralism, working cooperatively with China, the UN supporter. 

Schumer, the enlightened US Senate Majority Leader, and Chinese President Xi Jinping should see eye-to-eye, bringing hope closer to a war-torn-world.

 

The views do not necessarily reflect those of DotDotNews.

To contact the writer, please direct email: AugustusKYeung@ymail.com

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