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Fan Chen

China and the US should strive for “normal stability with controllable disagreements” in their relations, a senior Chinese official has urged in the latest semi-official dialogue with Washington.
During the talks on Tuesday, Liu Haixing, head of the Communist Party’s International Department, said the two countries should expand the “pie” of shared interests to achieve positive stability anchored in cooperation.
“[Both sides] should reject zero-sum games to achieve healthy stability with well-managed competition, and seek common ground while bridging differences to achieve normal stability with controllable disagreements,” Liu said.
He made the remarks at the third US-China Track 1.5 Dialogue, a mechanism established in 2023 to bridge official diplomacy and non-governmental exchanges between the two countries.
The dialogue brought together roughly 40 Chinese and foreign representatives from local government, think tanks and universities, as well as members of the US strategic and business communities.
The US delegation attending the two-day dialogue was led by John Thornton, co-chairman of the Asia Society think tank. The US group also included Kevin Rudd, Asia Society chief and former Australian prime minister; Sean Stein, president of the Washington-based US-China Business Council; and Craig Allen, a former US ambassador.
The US delegation described bilateral ties as being “at a unique juncture” and highlighted the rapport between presidents Xi Jinping and Donald Trump as the “most vital and valuable component” of the relationship, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.
“Both sides should deepen dialogue, foster political mutual trust and advance cooperation across trade, cultural exchanges, healthcare, artificial intelligence and food security, while properly managing differences and together addressing global challenges,” the US delegation was quoted as saying.
Other members of the delegation included American businessman Craig Mundie, cancer prevention specialist Otis Brawley, Amy Celico, executive director of Tsinghua University’s Schwarzman Scholars programme, and American venture capitalist Gary Rieschel.


The dialogue comes just weeks ahead of a trip to the US by Chinese President Xi Jinping, his first state visit to the country since 2015.
Both sides are preparing for the summit in September, but Beijing has appeared to be frustrated with the Trump administration’s lack of planning and coordination, with little progress made on deliverables for the meeting.
In talks with some of the US group on Monday, Wang Huning, China’s fourth-ranked official, said China stood ready to “enhance correct mutual perceptions and respect each other’s core interests”, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.
Wang, chairman of the country’s top political advisory body, said the US and China would also strengthen cooperation across various sectors, “properly manage differences and build a constructive, strategically stable China-US relationship”.
Chinese vice foreign minister Ma Zhaoxu also met some of the dialogue participants on Monday.


Track 1.5 dialogues are a middle ground between official government-to-government talks and informal or academic exchanges.
The first US-China Track 1.5 dialogue took place via video conference in 2023, followed by a second session in Beijing in 2024.
At the 2024 meeting, some 30 Chinese and Americans from various governments, universities and think tanks agreed that the two sides should adhere to “peaceful coexistence and avoid conflict and confrontation”.
That theme was echoed this year, when Trump travelled to Beijing for a summit in May.
During those talks, Xi said the two leaders had “agreed on a new vision of building a constructive China-US relationship of strategic stability”, framing a new direction for bilateral relations.
But frictions since then have tested that stability.
On Monday, six months into its war with Iran, the US announced fresh sanctions on entities, individuals and vessels – including some tied to mainland China and Hong Kong – to try to raise the pressure on Tehran’s economy.
Beijing criticised the move, calling for de-escalation and a return to dialogue, and vowing to “take all necessary measures” to safeguard its rights and interests.
In July, Washington expanded its Uygur Forced Labour Prevention Act entity list by targeting dozens of Chinese firms, while simultaneously banning imports and sales of new foreign robotics and power inverters – two industries dominated by China.
Beijing retaliated by sanctioning seven US entities and tightening export controls on drones and related technology.
Additional reporting by Orange Wang


A previous version of this story wrongly identified Craig Allen as the USCBC president rather than Sean Stein. This has been corrected.


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Senior party official Liu Haixing uses unofficial discussions to make the case for disagreements to remain ‘controllable’


Senior party official Liu Haixing uses unofficial discussions to make the case for disagreements to remain ‘controllable’.


‘Normal stability’: US-China Track 1.5 talks offer formula for ties

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Senior party official Liu Haixing uses unofficial discussions to make the case for disagreements to remain ‘controllable’

Senior party official Liu Haixing uses unofficial discussions to make the case for disagreements to remain ‘controllable’