Wang Shouwen:
Thank you, Mr. Guo. Friends from the press, ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Today, the State Council Information Office issued a white paper titled "China's Position on the China-U.S. Economic and Trade Consultations." Thank you very much for joining us this weekend. Mr. Guo has just provided a brief introduction to the main contents of the white paper, and I would like to add a few more points here.
The international community has paid close attention to the China-U.S. economic and trade consultations, and there are some rumors and speculations. In order to clarify the facts and show China's position on this issue, the Chinese government has compiled a white paper, "China's Position on the China-U.S. Economic and Trade Consultations." The white paper provides a comprehensive picture of the China-U.S. economic and trade consultations and presents China's policy position on these consultations from the perspectives of the impacts of China-U.S. economic and trade frictions, the backtracking of the U.S. on commitments in China-U.S. trade consultations, and China's principle and position on the consultations.
China believes that China and the U.S., the two largest economies in the world, benefit from cooperation and harm each other in disputes. The bilateral economic and trade relations bear on the fundamental interests of the two peoples and the prosperity and stability of the global economy. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties 40 years ago, China and the U.S. have seized the historic opportunities brought by the integration of the global economy and the liberalization of trade and investment, giving full play to the huge complementary advantages of the two economies, and promoting the leapfrog and diversified development of bilateral economic and trade cooperation from scratch. The value of bilateral trade in goods was only $2.5 billion when the two countries established diplomatic ties. Last year, bilateral trade in goods reached $633.5 billion, an increase of 252 times. The volume of bilateral trade in services reached $125 billion, and the two-way direct investment approached $160 billion. It can be said that China and the U.S. witnessed an economic and trade cooperation that has never been broader or deeper as today, and the two economies have become more closely linked, which not only brings tangible benefits to the two countries and the two peoples, but also contributes to the prosperity and stability of global economy.
Certainly, it is inevitable that there are some differences and frictions in the economic and trade cooperation because the two countries are in different stages of economic development and have adopted different economic systems. This is normal in our view and requires both sides to solve problems, resolve disputes, expand consensus, and narrow differences through dialogues and consultations while adopting a rational and cooperative attitude, so as to push bilateral economic and trade relations along the track of cooperation.
Since it took office, the current U.S. administration has frequently provoked economic and trade frictions with trade deficits and intellectual property rights as excuses, and imposed unilateral tariffs on China, regardless of the interests of China, the U.S. and even the world, or the nature of the mutually beneficial cooperation between China and the U.S. in economic and trade fields. China has to take effective measures to safeguard the interests of the country and its people. Meanwhile, China has always insisted on resolving disputes through dialogues and consultations and has conducted several rounds of economic and trade consultations with the U.S. side, working hard to stabilize bilateral economic and trade relations. China adopts a consistent and clear attitude that we are willing to address the economic and trade differences between the two countries through cooperation and push for a mutually beneficial agreement; however, there are principles for cooperation and a bottom line for consultations, and China will not back down on major issues of principle.
As President Xi Jinping pointed out, cooperation is the only correct choice for China and the United States. China will continue to work earnestly no matter how the situation changes. We would like to see both sides to meet halfway, and narrow differences and strengthen cooperation in the spirit of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit, in a bid to promote the steady and sound development of the China-U.S. economic and trade relations together and improve the well-being of the people of the two countries and the world at large. Thank you.
