FM calls for mutual respect and win-win cooperation

China is not the United States and will not become another US, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Friday, stressing that the two major countries are fully capable of pursuing mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation.

Wang made the remarks during a meeting with US representatives attending the US-China Political Dialogue 2026, quoting an ancient Chinese saying about "all things growing together without harming one another, and different paths running in parallel without conflicting with the other".

He said that the dialogue has been held 15 times since its launch in 2010, and has played a positive role in deepening mutual understanding.

Wang urged both sides to translate the important consensus reached between the leaders of the two countries into concrete policies and actions, saying that Beijing and Washington should embrace harmony while respecting differences, view each other objectively and rationally, and develop stable, positive expectations for China-US relations in the long term.

He called for expanding dialogue and cooperation in science and technology, artificial intelligence and other fields for mutual benefit, and opposed the abuse of the concept of security and excessive politicization.

People-to-people exchanges underpin relations between countries, Wang said, urging sustained efforts to expand exchanges, particularly among young people and students.

He also called on both nations to fulfill their international obligations, and act with the responsibility expected of major countries in safeguarding world peace.

Representatives of the delegation — led by former US ambassador to China and former senator Max Baucus — said the two countries should strengthen cooperation in areas such as trade and AI, and build greater mutual trust.

They said that exchanges between the two peoples, especially young people and students, could foster friendship and trust. They expressed appreciation for President Xi Jinping's initiative to invite 100,000 US youth to visit China for exchanges and study over the next five years, saying they were willing to contribute to the healthy and stable development of US-China relations.

In an interview during the dialogue, Michael Hart, president of the Beijing-based American Chamber of Commerce in China, said that interactions between the two heads of state this year offered an important opportunity to steer bilateral ties toward a more positive direction.

"The two leaders have set the tone," Hart said, adding that he hoped to see more working-level exchanges and cooperation in 2027.

"We need more discussions between US and China leaders at every level," he said, calling for broader engagement involving political leaders, business executives, students and other organizations.

Jeffrey Lehman, vice-chancellor of New York University Shanghai and chair of the board of governors of AmCham Shanghai, said the recent stabilization of China-US relations was particularly important for the chamber's roughly 1,000 member companies, which needed a predictable environment to plan investments and organize supply chains.

"This kind of stability is critically important for the prosperity of both countries," he said, expressing confidence that the new positioning for bilateral relations would help reinforce that stability.