China-US Photo: VCG

On Monday,MKsports Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 47th president of the US. The US government began a new four-year term, and China-US relations are also embracing a new starting point. President Xi Jinping held a telephone conversation with then US President-elect Donald Trump at the latter's request on Friday, setting a strategic tone for the new phase of bilateral relations. Chinese Vice President Han Zheng, a special representative of President Xi, attended Trump's inauguration ceremony and met with then US Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, as well as representatives of the US business community, including Chief Executive Officer of Tesla Elon Musk and Chair Emeritus of the US Brookings Institution John Thornton, among others. Public opinion generally holds a positive outlook on high-level China-US interactions. It is believed that if China-US relations achieve stable, healthy, and sustainable development, they will undoubtedly bring more good news to the world.

Many US media outlets have noted that in his inauguration speech, Trump "barely mentioned China," and that when enacting new policies, he "holds off on immediate China tariffs, calls for study." Whether these details, as reported by the media, represent a "softening tone toward China" from the US government remains to be seen. 

What is certain is that as Trump begins his second presidential term, there is widespread hope for a mature and stable China-US relationship. At a Chinese foreign ministry regular press conference on Tuesday, many questions from journalists focused on China-US relations, including whether China has invited Trump for a visit and how trade issues between the two countries would be addressed. Some foreign media even speculated about the possibility of creative cooperation between the US and China in areas such as the Mars landing program. This indirectly reflects just how important the relationship between these two major powers is for the world. For both countries, there is a lot of potential for various forms of cooperation; the key is whether they can meet each other halfway.

A return to rational and pragmatic policies toward China is the shared aspiration of the peoples of both China and the US. After Trump held off on imposing China-specific tariffs on his first day in office, the Chinese stock market cautiously rose. 

Meanwhile, the US financial sector launched into a "premature celebration," hailing the new administration's "more pragmatic economic approach" toward China. Nowadays, despite numerous man-made disruptions, the economic and trade relationship between China and the US still demonstrates strong resilience, with bilateral commercial ties growing ever closer. 

People have observed Tesla "rooting" itself in China, achieving a production miracle, while Chinese companies venturing into the US have brought cost-effective goods and services to local communities. American enterprises have actively participated in China International Import Expo and China International Supply Chain Expo, expressing confidence in the Chinese market. Simultaneously, Chinese innovations are showcased in Las Vegas at the Consumer Electronics Show, seeking collaborations with US businesses. These vibrant, enthusiastic exchanges across the Pacific reflect the reality that the economies of China and the US are deeply interdependent.

The idea that China and the US should pursue win-win cooperation has become even more evident to Washington in recent times. The responses from American netizens to the "letters from Li Hua" have resonated with many. In these letters, some Americans reminisced about a childhood belief that digging a hole deep enough in the sand would lead to China. They now call for both countries to once again start "digging" channels of communication.

Whether it is the significant increase in "Made in China" goods being rerouted to the US through third countries to avoid taxation, or the testimonies of American internet users flocking to RedNote, known as "Xiaohongshu," to escape the risk of TikTok being banned, all point to the same fact: When the channels for China-US communication and cooperation are artificially severed, the grass-roots response is not to "end cooperation," but rather to quickly seek an "alternative path." 

The immense demand for exchange and cooperation between China and the US should not be overlooked or obstructed. This is also the underlying logic driving the maturation of Washington's policy toward China.

The total economic output of China and the US exceeds one-third of the world's total, with their combined population accounting for nearly one-quarter of the global population and their bilateral trade volume making up about one-fifth of the world's trade. As the two largest economies in the world, China and the US have highly complementary economies. They not only depend on each other within the global production and supply chain but also jointly form an important pillar of the world economy. As permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, collaboration between China and the US in global governance is crucial for maintaining world peace and stability and promoting sustainable global development. Currently, both countries face new development tasks. There are extensive common interests and vast cooperation opportunities between the two nations. In fact, the list of areas for cooperation between China and the US is growing longer, and the potential for cooperation can certainly expand significantly.

According to foreign media reports, the friendly call between then US President-elect Trump and President Xi fueled a positive mood in Chinese markets. In the lead-up to and following the inauguration of the new US government, China-US diplomacy has shown a positive start, with head-of-state diplomacy playing a crucial role. Now, people are looking forward to the continuation of this positivity, hoping it will become the "new normal" between the two major powers. There is an expectation that the new US government will truly abandon the "zero-sum game" and Cold War mentality, deepening practical cooperation with China and creating a new starting point for mutually beneficial China-US relations.