Warm Reception Burns High as Everyone Lauds Xi's Policy Speech in Seattle

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech during a welcome banquet jointly hosted by Washington State government and friendly communities in Seattle, the United States, Sept. 22, 2015. Xi arrived in this east Pacific coast city on Tuesday morning for his first state visit to the U.S. [Photo:Xinhua/Li Tao]

Veteran US diplomat Henry Kissinger, at the Seattle banquet involving business and political figures, made the introduction before President Xi took the stage on Tuesday night. The event was attended by U.S. business and political luminaries who according to New York Times paid up to U.S$30,000 a table for the dinner. President Xi received a warm welcome to standing applause from the hundreds in attendance.

President Xi started his speech in his usual manner consistent with his sure-fire style of winning over the audience. He stated "I am no stranger to … Seattle... The film Sleepless in Seattle has made the city almost a household name in China."

President Xi's, Policy speech in Seattle held a lot of significance owing to the fact that this is the President's first state visit to the U.S. This speech was not only going to set the connotations for the rest of the visit but also for the China-US relations. Xi Jinping did a fine job in addressing U.S. concerns while advocating his views on fostering peaceful and symbiotic relations. He also touched upon important issues including cyber security, Corruption and affirmed that China's economy is in fine fettle.

China's progress over the past few decades has been phenomenal and the beginnings have been very humble. President Xi eloquently described this journey through his personal experiences in such an affable and familiar manner that it certainly touched the hearts of many.

The major messages that the Chinese president's visit holds for the U.S. and the world at large are that; China's economy is on the right track and growing stronger, the process of implementing reforms adopted by the current administration in China is bearing fruit and China's doors are open for trade and investment. President Xi's policy speech was on cue and highlighted the facts about the steady growth in the economy. He said, "China's economy will stay on a steady course with fairly fast growth… It grew by 7 percent in the first half of this year, and this growth rate remains one of highest in the world." He did accept the fact that this has not been easy "given the complex and volatile situation in world economy. At present, all economies are facing difficulties, and our economy is also under downward pressure. But this is only a problem in the course of progress."

The president also touched upon the new model of economic growth in which innovation, entrepreneurship and consumption is being targeted rather than manufacturing. He said "China will focus more on improving the quality and efficiency of economic growth, and accelerating the shift of growth model and adjustment in economic structure. I will lay greater emphasis on innovation and consumption-driven growth."

In-order to dispel concerns and cultivate investor confidence regarding the recent stock-market crash the President acknowledged the anomaly and explained how the government maneuvered to "prevent massive panic from happening...and avoided the systemic risk."

The President also quelled speculation regarding the depreciation of the Chinese currency he said "we're against currency war," and further elaborated "We will not lower the RMB rate to boost exports."

Chinese government reforms are discussed much and wide in the world media and for investors they are a key indicator. President Xi reiterated the government's resolve to implement and further open-up the economy and let the market play a bigger role. He said "China will never close its open door to the outside world. Opening up is a basic state policy of China. Its policies that attract foreign investment will not change, nor will its pledge to protect legitimate rights and interests of foreign investors in China."

Cyber security and corruption are hot topics, the President voiced his intentions and resolve to tackle both concerns, he stated, "China is ready to set up a high-level joint dialogue mechanism with United States on fighting cyber crimes." Regarding corruption President Xi left the ball in the U.S.'s court by stating, "China is ready to cooperate closely with the international community in fighting corruption and tracking down fugitives. The Chinese people look to the U.S. for support and coordination so that corrupt elements will be denied — an overseas safe haven." These are important steps towards bolstering relations with the U.S. and this part of the president's policy speech has made the foreign media go abuzz with praise for China's stance.

China's new silk route initiative is in the lime light and some experts hold negative views while in reality it is a massive scheme to promote trade and peace in the world. President Xi touched on the topic by stating, "To demonstrate our commitment to peaceful development, I announced not long ago that the size of China's military will be cut by 300,000. China is ready to work with other countries to build new type of international relations with win-win cooperation at the core, replacing confrontation and domination with win-win cooperation and adopting a new thinking of building partnerships so as to jointly open a new vista of common development and shared security."

The Chinese President presented in his speech four key steps to achieving success in the new model of relationship with the U.S. The first step points towards a path without confrontation where he said, "We must read each other's strategic intentions correctly." for the second step he stated, "We must firmly advance win-win cooperation." In which the President emphasized the importance of the Bilateral Investment Treaty between China and the U.S. The third key step accentuates dispute resolution and he stated that "we must manage our differences properly and effectively." In the fourth and the last step he laid stress upon, people to people exchanges and relations. He said, "We must foster friendly sentiments among the peoples."

During President Xi's speech there was more than one occasion where the audience laughed and applauded the President for being in touch with America, due the references he made to the 1993 film "Sleepless In Seattle," and the Netflix hit TV series "House of Cards." This has endeared the President to the American public and lends credence to the fact that, cooperation through understanding each other is crucial, and that is why Xi said, "The Chinese character Ren, or people, is in a shape of two strokes supporting each other. The foundation of the China-U.S. friendship has its roots in the people."

The Author: Shafei Moiz Hali has a master's degree from George Mason University, Virginia, USA in the field of International Commerce and Public Policy. Mr. Hali has been working as an Assistant Professor at the National Defence University (NDU), Islamabad, Pakistan with the department of Government and Public Policy Since 2009. Currently he is perusing his PhD from the College of Public Administration at the Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), China.