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In the modern world of international rela- tions， state visits are no longer the sole means for heads of state to communicate and concert their stances. China and the United States have been seeking a way to build a newtype relationship since Chinese President Xi Jinping took office in 2013. Xi and U.S. President Barack Obama’s meeting in The Hague showed a flexible and smart way of exchanging ideas and reaching consensus.
The two leaders met on March 24 ahead of the Third Nuclear Security Summit. This was their first meeting in 2014， and the third in the last 12 months. Last year， Xi and Obama met twice， once informally in June in California， and again more formally during the Group of 20 Summit in September in St. Petersburg， Russia.
Face to face
In the six months since the two leaders last met， a series of unexpected events have arisen in the international arena， requiring face-to-face communication， said Ruan Zongze， Vice President of the China Institute of International Studies（CIIS）. He added that both sides had an urgent need to exchange views over these issues.
Guo Xiangang， a senior research fellow with the CIIS， stressed that as the first meeting between Xi and Obama this year， it was highly significant for the next phase of bilateral relations. He believes that reaching new common understandings and sharing mutual concerns over world events are important to both major powers. Moreover， Guo added， considering the occasion of the Nuclear Security Summit， promoting cooperation on nuclear nonproliferation was necessary and mutually beneficial.
Their meeting in The Hague was reported to have strengthened the connection between China and the United States， as many collective understandings were achieved. The two leaders exchanged views over issues ranging from the development of bilateral relations to current international affairs， including sensitive topics like the Ukrainian crisis and nuclear issues in Iran and the Korean Peninsula. Xi also extended special appreciation to Obama for having called to express condolences over the missing Malaysian jetliner MH370， on which 154 Chinese citizens were aboard， and for ordering relevant U.S. authorities to participate in the search and rescue operation and share information with the Chinese side.
Beijing will join Washington in handling bilateral ties based on principles such as nonconfrontational actions， mutual respect， and win-win cooperation， Xi said， expecting the two nations to take more active and forceful actions to coordinate their bilateral， regional and global cooperation， and efficiently manage their differences and other sensitive matters so as to maintain the healthy and stable development of bilateral ties. Xi stressed the two sides should respect each other’s differences and stances， especially when core interests including sovereignty are concerned.
Obama promised that his country respects China’s sovereignty and territorial integ-rity on the Taiwan and Tibet questions， and Washington “does not intend to undermine China’s stability or contain it.” The U.S. president stressed that his country is willing to handle its differences and frictions with China in a constructive manner， and to work with Beijing to send positive signals that the two sides are both committed to developing their relations. Obama reiterated his condemnation of the recent terrorist attack in the southwestern Chinese city of Kunming， saying that his country opposes terrorism in all forms and will strongly condemn terrorist activities wherever they take place.
Substantive interaction
World focus has recently shifted to the Ukrainian crisis， which began as an anti-government political protest， escalated with the ouster of a pro-Russia president， and ended with Crimea’s declaration of independence from Ukraine and application to join Russia. The U.S.-headed West imposed a series of sanctions on Russia， while China emphasized its “just and objective attitude.” Communication over the Ukrainian crisis was one of the topics between the two presidents when they met in The Hague.
Xi reiterated China’s stance that “the promotion of a political solution to the crisis serves the interests of all parties，” calling for promptly setting up an international coordination mechanism and urging all related parties not to take any action that might lead to a further deterioration of the situation. “China supports the constructive efforts made by the international community to ease tension， and holds an open attitude toward all plans that are helpful to promote a political solution，” he said.
Obama illustrated Washington’s views on the Ukrainian issue， saying that his country agreed with China’s stance and principles， attached importance to China’s role， and was willing to maintain communication and cooperation with China.
Now the Sino-U.S. relationship is at a stage in which the two shape one another， said Diao Daming， a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences， predicting interaction between the two major powers will be more frequent in the coming months. He noted that if the midterm elections of U.S. Congress in the second half of 2014 become unfavorable to Obama and the Democrats， Obama may work to emphasize his handling of the China-U.S. relationship as a highlight of his leadership. Yuan Peng， Vice President of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations， said that the style and frequency of meetings between Chinese and U.S. presidents reflect the special significance of the two major powers’ relationship. “This is indicative of progress in bilateral relations，” Yuan said.
Only a few days before the Xi-Obama meeting in The Hague， the Chinese president and his wife hosted U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama. Michelle Obama， with her two daughters and mother， arrived in Beijing on March 20， kicking off a seven-day visit to China. During the meeting， Obama thanked China for its hospitality to his family.
The familiar atmosphere between the two presidents differs from the typical， stark official way of interacting. “This proves that the China-U.S. relationship can become richer in substance，” said Jin Canrong， a professor with the Renmin University of China.
Common Understandings
The meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama was “frank and constructive，” said Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Qin Gang on March 24 in The Hague. He concluded 10 common understandings reached between the two presidents：
The two leaders
—Spoke positively of the historic development of bilateral ties since the birth of their diplomatic bond 35 years ago， pledging to keep up with their commitment to building a new type of major-country relations
—Made joint efforts for the upcoming sixth round of the China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue and the fifth round of the China-U.S. Consultation on People-to-People Exchange in China
—Recognized the momentum observed in bilateral trade and investment cooperation since last year， agreeing to speed up talks over an investment pact， to oppose trade protectionism， to maintain an open and transparent trading system both at the regional and global levels， and to support each other’s domestic reform agenda
—Agreed to strengthen dialogues between the two militaries， to set up a mechanism to inform each other of major military moves at an early date and to draft a code of conduct to safeguard the security of the navies and air forces on the high seas
—Agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation of fighting against terrorism and to boost law-enforcement cooperation， like combating transnational crime
—Agreed to enhance cooperation in climate change， clean energy and environmental protection
—Pledged to deal with sensitive issues and issues where they have different ideas based on the principles of mutual respect and treating each other as equals
—Recognized that they share important common interests in the Asia-Pacific region and should continue to enhance bilateral dialogues and coordination so as to promote peace， stability and prosperity in the region
—Committed to promoting the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and maintaining the area’s peace and stability while creating conditions for an early resumption of the six-party talks
—Stated that they share the same goal of nuclear security and are willing to further deepen their cooperation in this area， pledging to communicate and coordinate with each other within the Nuclear Security Summit and other mechanisms to make contributions to global nuclear security and non-proliferation
（Source： Xinhua News Agency）
The two leaders met on March 24 ahead of the Third Nuclear Security Summit. This was their first meeting in 2014， and the third in the last 12 months. Last year， Xi and Obama met twice， once informally in June in California， and again more formally during the Group of 20 Summit in September in St. Petersburg， Russia.
Face to face
In the six months since the two leaders last met， a series of unexpected events have arisen in the international arena， requiring face-to-face communication， said Ruan Zongze， Vice President of the China Institute of International Studies（CIIS）. He added that both sides had an urgent need to exchange views over these issues.
Guo Xiangang， a senior research fellow with the CIIS， stressed that as the first meeting between Xi and Obama this year， it was highly significant for the next phase of bilateral relations. He believes that reaching new common understandings and sharing mutual concerns over world events are important to both major powers. Moreover， Guo added， considering the occasion of the Nuclear Security Summit， promoting cooperation on nuclear nonproliferation was necessary and mutually beneficial.
Their meeting in The Hague was reported to have strengthened the connection between China and the United States， as many collective understandings were achieved. The two leaders exchanged views over issues ranging from the development of bilateral relations to current international affairs， including sensitive topics like the Ukrainian crisis and nuclear issues in Iran and the Korean Peninsula. Xi also extended special appreciation to Obama for having called to express condolences over the missing Malaysian jetliner MH370， on which 154 Chinese citizens were aboard， and for ordering relevant U.S. authorities to participate in the search and rescue operation and share information with the Chinese side.
Beijing will join Washington in handling bilateral ties based on principles such as nonconfrontational actions， mutual respect， and win-win cooperation， Xi said， expecting the two nations to take more active and forceful actions to coordinate their bilateral， regional and global cooperation， and efficiently manage their differences and other sensitive matters so as to maintain the healthy and stable development of bilateral ties. Xi stressed the two sides should respect each other’s differences and stances， especially when core interests including sovereignty are concerned.
Obama promised that his country respects China’s sovereignty and territorial integ-rity on the Taiwan and Tibet questions， and Washington “does not intend to undermine China’s stability or contain it.” The U.S. president stressed that his country is willing to handle its differences and frictions with China in a constructive manner， and to work with Beijing to send positive signals that the two sides are both committed to developing their relations. Obama reiterated his condemnation of the recent terrorist attack in the southwestern Chinese city of Kunming， saying that his country opposes terrorism in all forms and will strongly condemn terrorist activities wherever they take place.
Substantive interaction
World focus has recently shifted to the Ukrainian crisis， which began as an anti-government political protest， escalated with the ouster of a pro-Russia president， and ended with Crimea’s declaration of independence from Ukraine and application to join Russia. The U.S.-headed West imposed a series of sanctions on Russia， while China emphasized its “just and objective attitude.” Communication over the Ukrainian crisis was one of the topics between the two presidents when they met in The Hague.
Xi reiterated China’s stance that “the promotion of a political solution to the crisis serves the interests of all parties，” calling for promptly setting up an international coordination mechanism and urging all related parties not to take any action that might lead to a further deterioration of the situation. “China supports the constructive efforts made by the international community to ease tension， and holds an open attitude toward all plans that are helpful to promote a political solution，” he said.
Obama illustrated Washington’s views on the Ukrainian issue， saying that his country agreed with China’s stance and principles， attached importance to China’s role， and was willing to maintain communication and cooperation with China.
Now the Sino-U.S. relationship is at a stage in which the two shape one another， said Diao Daming， a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences， predicting interaction between the two major powers will be more frequent in the coming months. He noted that if the midterm elections of U.S. Congress in the second half of 2014 become unfavorable to Obama and the Democrats， Obama may work to emphasize his handling of the China-U.S. relationship as a highlight of his leadership. Yuan Peng， Vice President of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations， said that the style and frequency of meetings between Chinese and U.S. presidents reflect the special significance of the two major powers’ relationship. “This is indicative of progress in bilateral relations，” Yuan said.
Only a few days before the Xi-Obama meeting in The Hague， the Chinese president and his wife hosted U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama. Michelle Obama， with her two daughters and mother， arrived in Beijing on March 20， kicking off a seven-day visit to China. During the meeting， Obama thanked China for its hospitality to his family.
The familiar atmosphere between the two presidents differs from the typical， stark official way of interacting. “This proves that the China-U.S. relationship can become richer in substance，” said Jin Canrong， a professor with the Renmin University of China.
Common Understandings
The meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama was “frank and constructive，” said Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Qin Gang on March 24 in The Hague. He concluded 10 common understandings reached between the two presidents：
The two leaders
—Spoke positively of the historic development of bilateral ties since the birth of their diplomatic bond 35 years ago， pledging to keep up with their commitment to building a new type of major-country relations
—Made joint efforts for the upcoming sixth round of the China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue and the fifth round of the China-U.S. Consultation on People-to-People Exchange in China
—Recognized the momentum observed in bilateral trade and investment cooperation since last year， agreeing to speed up talks over an investment pact， to oppose trade protectionism， to maintain an open and transparent trading system both at the regional and global levels， and to support each other’s domestic reform agenda
—Agreed to strengthen dialogues between the two militaries， to set up a mechanism to inform each other of major military moves at an early date and to draft a code of conduct to safeguard the security of the navies and air forces on the high seas
—Agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation of fighting against terrorism and to boost law-enforcement cooperation， like combating transnational crime
—Agreed to enhance cooperation in climate change， clean energy and environmental protection
—Pledged to deal with sensitive issues and issues where they have different ideas based on the principles of mutual respect and treating each other as equals
—Recognized that they share important common interests in the Asia-Pacific region and should continue to enhance bilateral dialogues and coordination so as to promote peace， stability and prosperity in the region
—Committed to promoting the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and maintaining the area’s peace and stability while creating conditions for an early resumption of the six-party talks
—Stated that they share the same goal of nuclear security and are willing to further deepen their cooperation in this area， pledging to communicate and coordinate with each other within the Nuclear Security Summit and other mechanisms to make contributions to global nuclear security and non-proliferation
（Source： Xinhua News Agency）