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Obama’s interview with Southern Weekend

For the few days that the President of the United States of America was in China, there were rumours that the GFW of China would be lifted. However, most of what he said were censored out of the local media. And to all the places he visited, traffic was pretty much closed, causing loads of congestion that puzzled motorists. Besides his meeting with a supposed group of university students in Shanghai, he also had an exclusive interview with Southern Weekend in Beijing - one of the more outspoken newspapers in China. Here is the translated version from Telegraph. We are sure this was edited as well. For all the forthcoming co-operations between the two major economies talked about while the leader was here, one might imagine that he would touch on opening up the Internet in China -  if he did, we would never know.

Southern Weekend: Your visit to China is almost over. This was your first visit to China, at this moment what are your thoughts?

Obama: This visit to China was fruitful. We have discussed a range of topics concerning both sides. The continued development of the relationship between China and the US is not just significant to the people of both countries, but also to the whole world.

Southern Weekend: You mentioned Yao Ming in Shanghai, and I know you are interested in basketball. Do you still have time to play. Can you tell us more details about your work and your life?

Obama: I don’t play basketball as often as before, but I try to have a game every week, or every other week. I love watching games. I wish I could have seen the Shanghai Sharks, but I didn’t have time. I hope to meet Yao Ming, he is one of my favourite players.

Southern Weekend: This year is the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the US. You said in the press conference that you welcome a powerful and prosperous China that can play a bigger role on the world stage. In the joint statement, China also said that the US plays an important role in the Asia-Pacific region. How do you view the cooperation between China and the US in the region?

Obama: First of all, it is obvious that China has become one of the most significant economic powers in the world and this has been one of the most important global developments of the past two decades. Part of the reason for China’s rapid growth is that it has a good trading relationship with the US. More importantly, the Sino-US relationship is now bigger than just trade. We seek advice from each other on important issues such as climate change, which cannot be solved without the participation of both sides.

Very soon you will see a more extensive strategic relationship between the two sides, in which we will not only seek cooperation on major economic issues, which of course bring prosperity to both nations, but also close cooperation on all matters from climate change to anti nuclear proliferation, to combating terrorism, to fighting poverty and ensuring food security. We hope to see China develop onto the international stage. A wiser and more confident China will shoulder more responsibilities. At the same time we look forward to having a cooperative partnership.

Southern Weekend: The US hasn’t acknowledged China’s status as a market economy. What are the difficulties in recognising this?

Obama: We must note that China’s non-market economic status in the WTO is only applied in certain areas. In most areas, China is treated as a market economy, which is why trade between China and the US has grown strongly. My understanding is that the Chinese government has taken necessary measures with the target of acquiring market economy status by 2015. Of course the US is interested in working with China on this target.

Southern Weekend: Do you have a time schedule for solving this issue?

Obama: In fact, there are a number of technical problems in the economics. What we are doing is to build a framework of Sino-US strategic and economic dialogues. A lot of the matters here are technical and we hope they can be solved.

Southern Weekend: The volume of trade between US and China is large, but the US has a lot of restrictions on exporting high-technology items to China. The companies involved in both countries are not happy and this also restricts the balanced development of trade between the two countries. What is your comment on this?

Obama: First of all we have to realise one very important fact, that the US is the most open market in the world. That is how China can accumulate such a large trade surplus with the US. We are reconsidering the embargo on hi-tech products. President Hu and I have discussed this issue and we think the US exporters may have the chance to export these products to China. Some of the restrictions have expired and we will have a new round of inspection on the restrictions. One of the targets of the G20 summit in Pittsburgh was the need to reach agreement on a more balanced growth model. China as well as other countries required more domestic consumption and the US is working on having higher savings and exports. This would help stabilise the global financial system and increase the standard of living of Chinese people and create more jobs in the US. This is one part of the more extensive approach that we will adopt. Others include reevaluating trading agreements and our currency policies. All of this is to pursue broader goals and more balanced growth.

Southern Weekend: In Tokyo and Shanghai you mentioned twice that the US will not seek to contain China’s rise. How will this policy take effect?

Obama: We have repeated in the current discussions with China that its stability and prosperity is in accordance with US national interests. A prosperous China can help ensure a prosperous and stable Asia. It is just like the stability of South Korea and Japan are beneficial to world peace and US commercial development. The only one thing that can stop this positive outcome is a mutual misunderstanding and misjudgement. This is why we need to not only conduct dialogue on the economics, but also on the security. The more that the US and China trust each other, the smaller the chance of a misunderstanding.