Ahead of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit to Asia, China scholar Orville Schell writes for TIME about how the Obama administration should approach ties with China and why climate change should be the top priority for both countries. Schell says:
For the first time in recent history, the U.S. and China find themselves with a demonstrably common interest. Equally significant, as the self-confidence and influence of the U.S. waned under the Bush Administration, the Sino-U.S. playing field has become more level than ever before. When it comes to climate change, we are both sinners before the Lord. This state of parity, however accidentally it may have been arrived at, presents a new psychological climate where the kind of equal partnership for which the Chinese have long yearned seems possible.
So when Clinton goes to China, questions to do with climate change must be at the top of the agenda. For example: Where can we cooperate on energy efficiency? Can the U.S. and China find ways to jointly profit from the development of low-carbon economies? Currencies, Tibet, human rights, Taiwan and other important questions should not be forgotten. But a new united front to address climate issues would help bolster the larger edifice of Sino-U.S. relations, making it easier to deal with these other contentious issues.
And from the Asia Society, a video and transcript of Clinton’s speech in New York on the eve of her trip, in which she announces the resumption of mid-level military exchanges between the U.S. and China.