China-US relations: A New Starting Point From ‘Constructive Strategic Stability’

By Chenghao Sun, Wu Kexi and Shen Shiwei

The American President Donald Trump’s held meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, during his state visit to China from May 13 to 15.

Trump’s visit to China has marked a new starting point for Beijing and Washington relations.

The agreement to build a constructive China-US relationship of strategic stability gave the world’s most consequential bilateral relationship a clearer framework for the years ahead.

This came at a moment when trade, technology, supply-chain security and regional risks have become increasingly intertwined, raising the cost of miscalculation.

The new positioning matters because it reframes China-US relations as a question of history, global stability and people’s interests.

Historically, it challenges the assumption that the China-US rivalry is bound to end in confrontation.

A constructive China-US relationship of strategic stability offers a more mature framework for major-power relations: competition can exist, but it should be disciplined by restraint, coexistence, and shared responsibility.

The wider world has a direct stake in this logic

Many countries, including European partners, do not want China-US relations to become either an exclusive G2 arrangement or a trigger for bloc confrontation.

A de facto G2 would sideline others, and a sharp breakdown would force them to choose sides.

The Beijing meeting pointed to a more balanced alternative, where the two major powers provide stability without dominating or dividing the international agenda.

The people-centered dimension gives the new positioning its practical weight.

A constructive and stable China-US relationship depends not only on official diplomacy but also on social demand.

Recent visits to China by US lawmakers, business leaders, scholars and young people show that the appetite for engagement remains strong.

Trump captured this familiarity in everyday terms, citing basketball, blue jeans, Chinese restaurants, and the shared respect for hard work, family and country.

These links give both societies a stronger stake in stability.

The policy value of this new positioning lies in moving China-US relations beyond crisis control.

It restores cooperation as the mainstay, keeps competition within proper bounds, and prevents rivalry from becoming the default language of the relationship.

It also limits the spillover of disputes across trade, technology, supply chains and regional security before they harden into systemic confrontation.

The broader value of China-US strategic stability is to make major-power relations a stabilizing force for peace and resilient development, rather than a source of disruption.

The real test is whether strategic consensus can shape the routine management of the relationship. Head-of-state diplomacy remains the anchor of China-US relations.

Sustained engagement between the two presidents has helped steady the relationship through turbulence.

The next step is to translate top-level guidance into regular consultations, departmental follow-up and issue-specific workstreams.

Those workstreams need reliable channels

Political and diplomatic communication can reduce strategic misreading, while military-to-military contact can prevent incidents from being mishandled.

Issue-based dialogue should focus on areas where risks are rising fastest, including AI safety, cybersecurity, law enforcement and regional hotspots.

Regular schedules and crisis-response procedures would make communication part of the relationship’s operating structure.

Economic dialogue can deliver the earliest visible results

Recent progress by the two economic and trade teams shows that consultation still has practical value.

Limited but meaningful arrangements on tariffs, agricultural trade, aviation, energy, financial services, and key supply chains would reduce market uncertainty and give strategic stability a concrete economic base.

They would also support global economic recovery by easing pressure on supply chains, improving business confidence and sending a steadier signal to markets.

Long-term stability also needs social support

Business communities, local governments, young people and scholars can keep the two societies connected beyond official diplomacy.

Student exchanges, tourism recovery, subnational cooperation and think tank dialogue cannot remove major differences, but they can prevent strategic mistrust from becoming social estrangement.

The durability of this framework will depend on how well the two sides manage the deeper security variables that could unsettle long-term stability, above all, Taiwan and technology security. The Taiwan question is the most important political condition for long-term stability in China-US relations.

Peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait are the largest common denominator between the two sides.

However, “Taiwan independence” is incompatible with that peace.

If mishandled, the issue could quickly unsettle the broader relationship and narrow the space for cooperation elsewhere.

China has explicitly reiterated the Taiwan question concerns China’s core interests and is the first red line that must not be crossed in China-U.S. relations.

Technology security is the other major pressure point.

What began as separate disputes over trade controls and technical standards now touches the core of advanced technology, data governance, critical infrastructure and supply-chain resilience.

If these issues harden into systematic decoupling, they will weaken the economic base of the relationship and deepen strategic mistrust.

AI deserves particular attention because both countries are technological competitors and both share the risks.

“Constructive strategic stability”, China and the US eye new vision for ties. The framework aims to balance competition with cooperation, supported by both government channels and social engagement. The Taiwan question remain a critical test for long-term stability. Translating top-level agreements into regular dialogue, economic cooperation, and social exchange is essential for durable peace.