Photo taken on May 14, 2019 shows a cargo loading area of Port Jersey in New Jersey, the United States. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)
"It's in our interests for China to be strong, you know, because then we have a strong partner. We can lean on each other and we can create something. We need strength, mutual strength from each other," Michael North said.
by Xinhua writers Yang Shilong, Xu Xingtang
NEW YORK, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- There are "a thousand ways" to get U.S.-China relations back onto the right track and no reason not to, a U.S. business leader told Xinhua.
In a recent interview with Xinhua, Michael North, chairman of Galaxy Trade and Technology, a U.S.-China joint venture engaging in international magnesium trade, pointed to the strong and deep fundamentals of U.S.-China relations.
Michael North, chairman of Galaxy Trade and Technology Company, is interviewed by Xinhua in Lexington, Kentucky, the United States, on May 24, 2019. (Xinhua/Li Rui)
The interweaving of these two economies, these two societies and these two cultures is "so deep, so continuous, so profound and so meaningful to so many people" that it cannot be "seriously disrupted" by the U.S.-China trade disputes, North said.
Citing the chorus of many state-level leaders at a recent National Governors Association meeting, he said "there are a thousand ways to get it (the bilateral relationship) right and no reason not to."
The current trade friction between the United States and China is a "temporary episode," North said.
"In a way it gives us all a chance to take a step back and think again, think a little more deeply, think about not only where we were and where we are, but where are we going and how can the partnership between the U.S. and China now move forward even more effectively to lead the world into a prosperous and peaceful future," he added.
Now it is time to "reset" the relationship instead of threatening it, said North, who also directs America-China Bridge, a Honolulu-based foundation devoted to building peace and understanding between China and the United States.
China is a "top-tier country," he said. "China is on a par with Europe and America in so many ways. Even China is ahead in some ways."
Containers of China COSCO Shipping Corporation Limited are seen at the Port of Long Beach, Los Angeles County, the United States, on Feb. 27, 2019. (Xinhua/Li Ying)
"It's in our interests for China to be strong, you know, because then we have a strong partner. We can lean on each other and we can create something. We need strength, mutual strength from each other," North said.
"It's easy to condemn viewpoints that you don't agree with. That's very easy to create a conflict. I'm good. You're bad. That doesn't actually change anything," he said.
"I believe that we can create a new system based more on equality and mutual respect," he said. "And that can happen and does happen between America and China all the time." ■
