Experts gathered at Harvard see many accomplishments to build on

While the US and China are going through a challenging time over trade, cooperation would better serve the interests of both over time, a panel of experts said on Monday.

The present and future of the Sino-US relationship was the topic of the China Economic Development and China-US Relations forum held by the China Institute of Fudan University at Harvard University.

Changes need to be made by both sides, the experts agreed, but neither country should forget what they achieved together or overlook the impact that bilateral cooperation has had on each other and the world.

"The US has benefited from better goods and lower-price goods, and American companies have benefited from manufacturing in China, serving the Chinese market," said William Overholt, senior research fellow at Harvard Kennedy School.

"China has certainly benefited enormously from access to an open American economy," he said. "Those common interests haven't been changed."

At the global level, the normalization of the Sino-American relationship 40 years ago also made a major contribution, according to Overholt, including leading the world into a service-based, super-industrial economy; fundamentally improving the human condition; establishing a globalized economy; moralizing supply chains; and encouraging institutional competition.

The benefits went beyond the economic perspective to the security level, as economic development made possible by bilateral cooperation contributed to the stabilization of the Asia-Pacific region. However, those benefits "tend to be lost" amid the current dispute, Overholt said.

The Trump administration has launched multiple policies against China this year, including tariffs on $250 billion worth of Chinese imports and tighter scrutiny of foreign investments.

Earlier this month, Vice-President Mike Pence delivered a speech at a Washington think tank, broadening criticism of China to issues ranging from trade to industrial policies.

"I think that Vice-President Pence's speech was too extreme," said Joseph Nye, former dean of the Kennedy School, who described current China-US relations as "troubled", with "excessive" rhetoric.

"But in the long term, I'd say it's bound to be cooperative, because there are too many things which neither of our two countries can manage on our own but which are extremely important to both our countries," said Nye, naming climate change and restrictions on cybersecurity as examples.

To resolve the current tension, "good-spirited, smart people on both sides really need to analyze the kinds of changes that need to happen", said Robert Kuhn, a noted China expert, who suggested that the changes come from both sides.

The US should recognize China's developmental economic model, and China should open its market much more, while establishing a fair business environment in which foreign companies can compete, suggested Kuhn. He acknowledged China's efforts in protecting intellectual property and its pledges not to require US companies to transfer technology.

"If we can get our leaders to look beyond the disputes of the moment to the larger picture, and in the meantime settle the very real problems very seriously, then we can use the 40th anniversary to change the tone; that would be a very good thing," said Overholt.

Contact the writer at [email protected]