China stands ready to work with U.S. to move forward bilateral ties: FM spokesperson

China stands ready to work with the United States to move forward the China-U.S. ties which are underpinned by coordination, cooperation and stability, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Sunday.

The remarks were made by spokesperson Lu Kang ahead of the new year of 2019, which marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the U.S.

Over the past four decades, China-U.S. ties have traversed a tortuous journey and forged ahead. The exchanges and cooperation between the two countries have scored historic achievements, Lu said.

Lu said 40 years ago, only several thousand visits were made between the two countries each year. In 2017, over 5.3 million visits were made between the two sides.

“Forty years ago, the bilateral trade volume was less than 2.5 billion U.S. dollars. In 2017, it surpassed 580 billion dollars,” Lu said.

Two-way investment between the two countries also soared over the period. In 2017, two-way investment in various forms amounted to over 230 billion dollars in accumulative terms from almost zero 40 years ago, according to Lu.

“Over the past 40 years, from advancing the proper settlement of regional hot-spot issues to fighting international terrorism, from tackling the global financial crisis to promoting global growth, China and the United States have conducted extensive cooperation at bilateral, regional and global levels,” Lu said.

Facts have fully shown that the development of China-U.S. ties has not only delivered huge benefits to the two peoples but also contributed to peace, stability and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region and the world, said the spokesperson.

The progress achieved in the past 40 years has not come easily, and experience should be derived from that, said Lu, adding that the two sides should view each other’s strategic intentions in a rational and objective manner, step up strategic communication, enhance strategic mutual trust and avoid strategic misjudgment.

The two sides should stick to the general direction of bilateral cooperation and keep expanding the areas for mutually beneficial cooperation so as to deliver more benefits to the two peoples, Lu said.

The two sides should respect each other’s sovereignty, security and development interests and properly manage differences in an effort to avoid disturbing the general picture of bilateral ties, he said.

The two sides should expand people-to-people exchanges to continuously cement the social foundation for China-U.S. relations, said the spokesperson.

“After 40 years of development, China-U.S. relations are standing at a new historical starting point,” Lu said.

In the face of new opportunities and challenges, China stands ready to work with the U.S. to implement the important consensus reached by President Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump in Argentina, expand cooperation on the basis of mutual benefit, manage differences on the basis of mutual respect, move forward the China-U.S. ties which are underpinned by coordination, cooperation and stability and make bilateral cooperation deliver greater benefits to the two peoples and people around the world, Lu said.