Contrary to America’s desire to impose universal values on the rest of the world, China’s nationalism does not inform or direct its foreign policy. This is exemplified by the institutional contrasts between the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor and China’s Confucius Institutes.

The ongoing series of high-level meetings show that, despite pressures from third-party players, Beijing and Washington value a cooperative relationship and mutual understanding that should continue to strengthen.

As China’s economy and interests continue to grow, Beijing will uphold its sovereignty, security and development interests and will assume a bigger role in regional and global affairs. President Xi’s upcoming visit is another opportunity for Americans to appreciate that China’s actions are targeted at the US and its allies.

The Secretary of State deepened the understanding between two countries at this critical time, but the chatter around the visit reminds both countries that consensus is easy to reach but hard to actualize. Upcoming high-level meetings, including President Xijping’s September State visit to Washington, provide opportunities to expand that critical understanding.

The maritime issue casts a dark shadow on the cooperation between the two countries in the wake of tenser contests in the South China Sea. It is time to prevent this difference from dominating the bilateral relationship.

While the US president is the architect of foreign policy, its development is both a top-down and bottom-up process. As the 2016 election approaches, it’s important to listen to those at operational levels within the government and scholars in academic circles, to see how the public consensus about the US-China relationship is evolving.

Policymakers in the United States, China, and other Asian powers must choose whether to deal forthrightly and sensibly with the changing regional power distribution or avoid the hard decisions that China’s rise poses until the situation grows ever more polarized and dangerous.

Full speech by Fu Ying, China’s NPC Chairwoman of Foreign Affairs Committee, at the University of Chicago on May 19. She talked about China’s growth and its experience with the evolving world order.

China’s modernization and international engagement reflect a trend for our times, and serve the common interests of the world. To achieve common prosperity for all, China seeks a new system based on cooperation, not confrontation.

President Xi Jinping’s visit has deepened China-Russia strategic mutual trust. That improves Eurasian cooperation and boosts the preservation and reform of the post-war international order, making it fairer and more just.