US business leader urges more exchanges with China

Businesses need certainty and China and the United States should work toward granting businesses that certainty, said Stephen Orlins, president of the National Committee on US-China Relations, advocating a more precise definition of national security in order to facilitate an increase in exports and investment between the world's two largest economies.

Both governments need to hold discussions on what the definition of national security is, and after they reach an agreement on the definition, trade and investment can be advanced, he told China Daily, adding that he hopes to see an increase in bilateral investment.

Orlins, who started his career helping US companies invest in China, said, "Trade is like dating ... investment is like marriage, you got to make it work, and it creates people-to-people bonds, which are so important for US-China relations."

He added, "And what I found over (the course of) my career is when you invest, you build that relationship."

Orlins, who has been serving as the president of the National Committee on US-China Relations since 2005, has rich experience in promoting China-US exchanges. He was a member of the legal team that helped establish diplomatic relations between Washington and Beijing in 1979.

On Wednesday, Orlins and other representatives from the US' business, strategic and academic communities met with President Xi Jinping in Beijing.

"He (Xi) urged us to rethink US-China relations. He said that he hopes the warmth of our exchanges inject positive feeling into US-China relations, so we can make progress," Orlins said.

Orlins posted a comment about their meeting on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, saying that it made a compelling case for cooperation between the US and China.

"We were all deeply impressed and recommitted to building a cooperative US-China relationship that benefits the peoples of both countries. NCUSCR was pleased to invite some of its directors, member companies, and friends to the event," he wrote.

Speaking to China Daily about their meeting with Xi, Orlins said, "It was a great talk."

He said the message the meeting sent out was that China's economy is resilient, and it still contributes 30 percent of global GDP growth. "The Chinese economy is going through a transition, but it will emerge even stronger with a higher quality kind of growth."

Foreign investors should come and stay in China, Orlins said, adding that they should also be optimistic because he believes the Chinese government will do what it can to improve the environment for foreign investment.

Speaking on the overall US-China bilateral relationship, Orlins said he believes the ties are trending in a better direction, and there is room for further improvement. He said he is ultimately hoping for "a constructive relationship that benefits the peoples on both sides".

Last November, Xi and US President Joe Biden met in San Francisco to lay the foundation for the improvement of bilateral ties. After the summit, military contacts were reestablished and different working groups and dialogues resumed.

There are a lot of areas where the two sides will see progress such as people-to-people exchanges, trade and investment, cooperation on artificial intelligence, definition of national security in order to create white lists, as well as cooperation on climate change, he said.

Both governments agree that people-to-people exchanges are positive and that they help the US-China relationship, he said.

According to Orlins, student exchanges between the US and China recorded a big drop in recent years. The number of Chinese students in the US plunged from around 400,000 to 300,000, and there were about 385 US students in China last year, he said.

"We need to see more American students return to China, and that's beginning to happen," he said. "We also need to see Chinese students continue to go to the US and be welcomed."

Talking about his work-related future plans, Orlins said he will continue promoting dialogues between the two countries. "We will continue to educate the Americans about China, as well as educate the Chinese about America. We have tons of work to do."