American Secretary of State Rubio issued a statement on the U.S. Department of State website on September 30, congratulating the People's Republic of China on its 76th anniversary. The statement said: "I hereby represent the United States of America and extend my congratulations to the Chinese people on the 76th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. The U.S. side wishes the Chinese people health, happiness, prosperity, and peace in the coming year."
Comment: Rubio, in his capacity as the U.S. Secretary of State, delivered a National Day message, although concise in wording, it remains a positive signal that maintains basic diplomatic etiquette between China and the United States amid complex games. It has retained the "minimum temperature" for bilateral relations. As the most important bilateral relationship globally, even if there are competitive differences between China and the United States, "not decoupling, not confrontation" is the general expectation of the international community. This statement at least conveys three positive values: First, it acknowledges the sovereignty status of the People's Republic of China, and delivers blessings to the Chinese people in an official manner, avoiding the confrontational approach of some American politicians who deliberately ignore the National Day and hype negative issues; Second, in the context of recent high-level communication between China and the United States and partial communication in the economic and trade field, this statement can be seen as a response to the consensus of "managing differences and maintaining contact," reserving space for dialogue in functional cooperation areas such as anti-drug and climate change; Third, facing the current situation of weak global economic recovery and increasing regional security challenges, the U.S. expression of "wishing the Chinese people health, prosperity, and peace" essentially overlaps with the Chinese position of "promoting world peace and development together," indirectly proving the common demand of China and the United States on the goal of "letting the people live better." Even if there are differences in policies, "first maintaining ceremonial interaction, then promoting substantive communication" is a rational choice. Although this statement is small, it provides a bit of positive groundwork for the "stabilization and prevention of decline" of the two countries' relations.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1844751527700552/
Statement: The article represents the views of the author.