In-depth talks produce positive signal that Sino-US relations can find right track of healthy development: China Daily editorial

After two rounds of talks between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and United States State Secretary Antony Blinken on Thursday and Friday, the two sides agreed to further increase direct passenger flights between the two sides.

An upcoming bilateral meeting to coordinate affairs concerning people with disabilities, which may lead to a memorandum of understanding on corresponding cooperation, was also agreed.

At the level of state-to-state relations, the two sides agreed to hold consultations respectively on maritime issues, arms control, proliferation prevention, and foreign policies.

And they reached a consensus on making concerted efforts for a meeting of the countries' leaders on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders' Meeting in San Francisco next month.

Wang's visit to Washington can certainly be considered successful given the list of "deliverables" it produced.

But its real significance lies in the fact the two parties are finally to take meaningful moves toward honoring promises of keeping the lines of communication open.

Just as Beijing has stated on several recent occasions and Wang repeated on his Washington trip, Beijing's hope is that China-US relations "get back on track". Wang's trip and the potential San Francisco meeting between leaders of the two countries are all about making that happen.

No matter how different their views are on many things — be it the Taiwan question and the South China Sea issue or the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the Israel-Palestine conflict — it is of critical importance that the two sides keep the conversation going.

Wang's visit was constructive in that he met not only his US counterpart, but also US President Joe Biden and US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, and told the US leader what Beijing cares about the most.

The principles he laid out, essentially about both countries following the guidelines set out by Beijing for handling bilateral ties, may sound less than actionable to Washington's policy circles as they seek "all-of-government competition", rather than win-win cooperation. But just as the White House has stressed on multiple occasions, face-to-face communication is conducive to avoiding misunderstandings and misjudgments.

The "road to the San Francisco summit will not be a smooth one" and the course cannot be left to "autopilot", Wang reportedly said. Given the array of differences the two governments have, that is no doubt the case.

But as Wang told his hosts, the twists and turns in the path of China-US relations this year offer lessons to learn from and experience to draw on — not least the fact that candid and constructive high-level exchanges have repeatedly produced positive outcomes, and are therefore crucial to further improving their relations.

The common interests of the two countries outweigh their differences and disputes. Rather than viewing their relationship as a zero-sum game, the two sides should recognize that bringing their relationship back on the track of healthy and steady development would benefit both of them.

Therefore, not only should the two sides resume dialogue, the dialogue should be "in-depth and comprehensive", as Wang told Blinken.

So long as both sides bear the benefits in mind, there is no reason why it can't be.