Stephen Orlins, president of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, emphasized that cooperation between the United States and China is essential to addressing the world’s most pressing challenges.
In a recent interview in Beijing with Yuyuantantian, a media outlet under China Media Group (CMG), Orlins said his work has always been guided by a desire to benefit the American people.
"I love China because I love the United States. I started to study it in the hope that I could help the American people better understand China, better formulate policies which benefit the American people. So my dealings with China have always been to benefit the American people," Orlins said.
He pointed out that Chinese investment in the United States has brought tangible benefits, including job creation and improved quality of life for Americans. Orlins also challenged the notion that economic or academic collaboration with China threatens U.S. national security.
"Chinese investment in the U.S. is a good thing, creates jobs in the United States, and makes the American people's lives better. So we need to decide what's national security. So, are EV batteries national security? I don't think so. Are solar panels national security? I don't think so. But there are people in the United States who believe that academic cooperation between the United States and China is not in American interests. I fundamentally disagree with that, because there is a misperception among people of the benefits that Chinese students bring to the United States. When I went to Silicon Valley and visited all these companies, you look around, and it's people who were from China," he said.
Reflecting on decades of U.S.-China engagement, Orlins underscored the global stakes of the bilateral relationship, arguing that cooperation is essential to solving the world’s most urgent problems.
"I see, because the fundamental challenges that we face are pandemic, climate change, economic prosperity, management of AI. These things are only going to be solved if the U.S. and China cooperate. I know I'm right. I don't get up in the morning and worry that I've made a mistake, that constructive relations don't benefit the American people. I am sure they do. Over these years, since we've established diplomatic relations, we have had a peaceful and prosperous world, and that to me is the greatest consistency in U.S.-China relations," he said.
US-China relations key to solving global challenges: American expert
