Xi-Trump summit: what ‘strategic stability’ means for US-China ties

Nong Hong, PhD, is executive director and senior fellow at the China-america-studies" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="128604" data-entity-type="organization">Institute for China-America Studies in Washington, US, and a senior fellow with the Beijing-club-for-international-dialogue" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="128605" data-entity-type="organization">Beijing Club for International Dialogue.One formulation emerging from the summit between President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in Beijing merits particular attention: the reference in China’s official readout to a “constructive China-US relationship of strategic stability” that should guide ties “over the next three years and beyond”.The wording is noteworthy, and not simply because it points to an effort to stabilise a difficult relationship in the short term. It suggests a broader attempt to place the management of that relationship within a more explicit political framework.The reference to “the next three years and beyond” is especially notable in this respect as it broadly corresponds to the remainder of the current US presidential term while also indicating an interest in framing the relationship in terms that extend beyond the immediate summit cycle.