by Xinhua writers Yang Shilong, Wang Wen and Zhang Mocheng
AUBURN, Maine, the United States, July 5 (Xinhua) -- "Small city, big ideas," says the home page of Auburn, a town of around 23,000 in the easternmost state of Maine.
Sitting between Portland, Maine's largest city and cultural center, and the state capital, Augusta, Auburn has been thinking really big in seeking closer cooperation with China despite the White House's hostile trade policies directed at Beijing.
CURRENT POLITICAL CLIMATE "TEMPORARY"
"Talking about the tariffs and some of the obstacles, we're going to be looking at (them). I think they can be overcome," Auburn Mayor Jason Levesque said in an interview with Xinhua recently.
Levesque, a former businessman, believes the current political climate in the United States is "temporary."
"It will even out, and we're two large trading partners. It has to even out," he said. "(The U.S.-China) trade partnership's going to last for generations to come. So by getting in now and taking advantage of what Auburn has, I think there's some right ground for some smart, long-term thinking."
Like other state and city leaders in Maine, the mayor said he has already expressed his concerns to one of the state's Congressmen over President Donald Trump's unilateral tariffs and unfriendly immigration policies that are already negatively affecting Maine's economy.
A set of retaliatory tariffs announced by China includes a plan to tax American lobster imports, which would jeopardize one of the biggest markets for Maine's signature seafood.
CHINESE INVESTMENT REVIVING PAPER INDUSTRY
It is important for Maine and Auburn to have a sound relationship with China as the bilateral win-win cooperation goes far beyond mere buying and selling lobsters.
The state, which once boasted a cluster of paper mills that employed thousands of people, saw the paper and pulp industry struggling in recent years.
Last month, a subsidiary of Nine Dragons Paper, one of the largest containerboard makers in China, bought Rumford Mill, a pulp and paper mill in Maine, and a mill in Wisconsin for 175 million U.S. dollars. The deal has prevented more than 600 workers from being laid off.
"I believe this will be the beginning of a strong relationship that will benefit Maine's people, economy and our paper and forest products industry for years to come," Maine Governor Paul LePage tweeted when the acquisition was announced in May.
In September, Levesque will pay his first visit to China, going on a trade mission to attract more investors.
"I want to absorb. I want to learn, so I understand more than what I can watch on CNN about (China)," he said.
Michael Chammings, Auburn's economic and community development director, has led several trade missions to China in recent years. The efforts have paid off, he said.
Chinese firm Mingling Industrial Group Co. bought the Prospect Hill Golf Course in Auburn at the end of 2016 and is in the process of establishing a mushroom plant in the city to grow mushrooms and process related products. It has already acquired land for the facility, and is looking for contractors to build the staff dormitory.
A medicare center funded by a Chinese company is also in progress. It aims to bring Chinese medical care seekers who can stay close to large U.S. hospitals, and receive medical treatment and recovery care.
Levesque said residents of Chinese origin are not new for the city, which seeks to make Chinese families who choose to settle down in Auburn feel at home.
"Rather than a government that says no, the government of Auburn is always one that says 'How can we help?'" the mayor said.
"Our housing costs are low. Our land is plentiful. We can absorb increase in population, not just physically, but we can actually absorb it within our culture very effectively."
BARRIERS TO CHINESE INVESTMENT
However, in the first half of 2018, Chinese acquisitions and greenfield investments in the United States were worth only 1.8 billion U.S. dollars, a year-on-year drop of more than 90 percent and the lowest level in seven years, according to research provider Rhodium Group.
Chinese investors face two major changes in U.S. policy, the report said. While Congress is expanding the national security investment review regime through the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, the Trump administration is threatening additional investment restrictions as part of the Section 301 investigation into Chinese intellectual property practices.
Local governments can do their own part to help improve the trade relations, Levesque said.
"If we focus on what we do at a very micro level and other communities focus on the micro level, then what happens at the national level becomes less impactful. At least in my opinion, we welcome everybody else's (investment)," he said.
Many U.S. subnational leaders are saying the same thing.
"We have about 9,000 employees in Kentucky who work for Chinese-owned companies," Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin told Xinhua in May. "I would like to see that number go up."
Alaskan Governor Bill Walker last month reaffirmed the state's strong ties with China, saying they offer "all the tools" the state needs for "a diverse economy."
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds said during her visit to China with an all-Iowa agriculture trade mission that the state will maintain its friendship with China and seek even closer cooperation.
Michigan Governor Rick Snyder also led a trade mission to China in July 2017 to attract more investments to his state. Elected officials in California and Ohio too have made similar overtures to Chinese investors.
"A lot of people that come here from different countries find it unusual that how much power the local government actually has," Chammings said.
"Most of our senators actually have offices within two miles of here, we can go right to their office. We've talked about this already. We've talked about immigration. We've talked about work visas. We talked about the EB-5 program. We've sat right down with them and told them our concerns and they do work for us," he said.
