A career diplomat, Cui has been a close observer and participant of China-US relations since early on. A 1987 graduate of Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Cui had worked as a Chinese language translator at UN headquarters in New York City in the early 1980s and later at China's UN mission in the late 1990s. His responsibilities included North American and Oceanian affairs when he was China's vice-foreign minister from January 2010 to April 2013.

Cui believes China and the US have always been able to find the convergence of shared interests, as well as a new way to tackle challenges.

"The China-US relationship has been future-oriented and continues to evolve with the times," he said. "It has continued to move forward amid win-win cooperation."

Cui believes the bilateral relationship is one based on mutual respect and a proper handling of differences.

As the largest developing nation and the largest developed nation with different histories, cultures, traditions and social systems, it is inevitable that China and the US have differences and even frictions, according to Cui.

"But both sides have been working hard to find convergence of shared interest and effective ways to manage the differences," he said. "Various mechanisms to facilitate communications and dialogue have been set up."

Cui dismissed the hype over China's announcement in November of the East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone as being an issue of major difference between the two nations. China only added itself to a long list of ADIZs announced a long time ago by countries including the US. "The two sides have open lines of communication," he said.

For Cui, reviewing the past 35 years of China-US relations provides very beneficial lessons on how to push the relationship forward in the future.

He said that the consensus reached by Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Obama in early June 2013 to build a new type of major country relationship has pointed to a clear direction.

The informal summit at Sunnylands, California, has been widely hailed as a milestone for the most consequential bilateral ties to forge ahead in the 21st century.

"With the 35 years of successful experience and with the direction set by the two nations' leaders, I believe China-US relationship, with its sound momentum, will be taken to a whole new level."

Contact the writer at chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com.

(China Daily USA 01/06/2014 page2)