In October 2026, Professor Xinbo WU, Dean of the Institute of International Studies, Fudan University, and Vice President of the Fudan Development Institute, was interviewed by Phoenix News on the latest trajectory of China–US relations. WU pointed out that the “respect, fairness and reciprocity” proposed at the China–US summit stems from the spirit of “equality, respect and mutual benefit” in economic and trade negotiations and has now been extended from the trade sphere to the overall relationship, further defining the modes of bilateral cooperation, the limits of competition and the paths for managing differences. On the Taiwan question, whatever “strategic clarity” or “strategic ambiguity” the US adopts, China must “keep it in its own hands” and firmly hold the initiative; Taiwan’s semiconductor industry investing in the US would actually reduce its own strategic value to America. On the economic front, he stressed that the irreplaceability of China’s supply chains runs through the upstream, midstream and downstream; “decoupling” and “de-risking” are easy for the US to proclaim but hard to do, and future US trade policy toward China will be more pragmatic and refined, reducing dependence on China only in a few sensitive areas where conditions permit. On AI, he saw room for China–US cooperation in technology application, commercialization and risk governance: AI safety cooperation is not a matter of choice but a necessity, and the biggest obstacle at present is the zero-sum mindset of US policymakers. As for the midterm elections, Trump needs a successful China-policy narrative to build a diplomatic achievement; rather than pressure from the Democrats in Congress, greater vigilance is needed against pro-Taiwan forces within the Republican Party who, while supporting Trump, might push hard-line measures toward China such as arms sales to Taiwan.

Translated by FDDI

Full text in Chinese available at:

https://fddi.fudan.edu.cn/1e/6a/c18965a794218/page.htm