Remarks by the President at the U.S./CHINA Strategic and Economic Dialogue

　　Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center

　　July 27, 2009

　　Good morning.  It is a great honor to welcome you to the first meeting of the Strategic Economic Dialogue between the United States and China.  This is an essential step in advancing a positive, constructive, and comprehensive relationship between our countries.  I'm pleased that President Hu shares my commitment to a sustained dialogue to enhance our shared interests。

　　President Hu and I both felt that it was important to get our relationship off to a good start.  Of course, as a new President and also as a basketball fan, I have learned from the words of Yao Ming, who said, "No matter whether you are new or an old team member, you need time to adjust to one another."  Well, through the constructive meetings that we've already had, and through this dialogue, I'm confident that we will meet Yao's standard。

　　I want to acknowledge the remarkable American and Chinese leaders who will co-chair this effort.  Hillary Clinton and Tim Geithner are two of my closest advisors, and they have both obtained extraordinary experience working with China.  And I know that they will have extremely capable and committed Chinese counterparts in State Councilor Dai and Vice Premier Wang.  Thank you very much for being here。

　　I'm also looking forward to the confirmation of an outstanding U.S. Ambassador to China, Governor Jon Huntsman, who is here today.  (Applause)  Jon has deep experience living and working in Asia, and —— unlike me ——he speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese.  He also happens to be a Republican who co-chaired Senator McCain's campaign.  And I think that demonstrates Jon's commitment to serving his country, and the broad, bipartisan support for positive and productive relations between the United States and China.  So thank you, Jon, for your willingness to serve。

　　Today, we meet in a building that speaks to the history of the last century.  It houses a national memorial to President Woodrow Wilson, a man who held office when the 20th century was still young, and America's leadership in the world was emerging.  It is named for Ronald Reagan, a man who came of age during two World Wars, and whose presidency helped usher in a new era of history.  And it holds a piece of the Berlin Wall, a decades-long symbol of division that was finally torn down, unleashing a rising tide of globalization that continues to shape our world。

　　One hundred years ago ——in the early days of the 20th century —— it was clear that there were momentous choices to be made —— choices about the borders of nations and the rights of human beings.  But in Woodrow Wilson's day, no one could have foreseen the arc of history that led to a wall coming down in Berlin, nor could they have imagined the conflict and upheaval that characterized the years in between.  For people everywhere -- from Boston to Beijing -- the 20th century was a time of great progress, but that progress also came with a great price。

　　Today, we look out on the horizon of a new century.  And as we launch this dialogue, it's important for us to reflect upon the questions that will shape the 21st century.  Will growth be stalled by events like our current financial crisis, or will we cooperate to create balanced and sustainable growth, lifting more people out of poverty and creating a broader prosperity around the world?  Will the need for energy breed competition and climate change, or will we build partnerships to produce clean power and to protect our planet?  Will nuclear weapons spread unchecked, or will we forge a new consensus to use this power for only peaceful purposes?  Will extremists be able to stir conflict and division, or will we unite on behalf of our shared security?  Will nations and peoples define themselves solely by their differences, or can we find common ground necessary to meet our common challenges, and to respect the dignity of every human being?　　We can't predict with certainty wh

　　奥巴马总统在美中战略与经济对话上的致辞

　　罗纳德·里根大厦和国际贸易中心

　　2009年7月27日

　　早上好。我很荣幸能欢迎你们前来参加首轮美中战略与经济对话会议。这是对推动两国建立积极、富有建设性和全面的关系至关重要的一步。胡锦涛主席和我均致力于开展旨在增进双方共同利益的可持续性对话，对此我感到十分高兴。

　　胡主席和我都认为，一个良好的开端对发展两国关系至关重要。当然，作为一名新上任的总统，同时还是一个篮球迷，我从姚明的话中受到了启发，他说：“无论你是老队员还是新队员，你都需要时间与其它队员磨合。” 我深信，通过我们此前举行的富有建设性的会晤和即将进行的对话，我们一定能够达到姚明提出的标准。

　　我要感谢将共同主持本次对话的美中两国卓越的领导者。希拉里·克林顿和蒂姆·盖特纳是我最亲密的两位顾问，他们均有丰富的对华工作经验。据我所知，他们将要面对的是中方能力出众、责任心极强的戴秉国国务委员和王岐山副总理。我对你们今天的出席表示感谢。

　　我还期待着我们才华横溢的乔恩·亨茨曼(即洪博培)州长出任美国驻华大使的提名能获得批准。他今天也在场。(掌声)乔恩有着丰富的在亚洲生活和工作经验。与我不同的是，他能讲一口流利的汉语。碰巧他还是一位共和党人，曾任麦凯恩参议员竞选团队的共同主席。我认为，这反映出乔恩服务国家的决心以及两党对发展积极且富有成效的美中关系的广泛支持。谢谢你，乔恩，感谢你同意担当这一重任。

　　今天，我们在一栋曾见证上世纪历史的大楼里开会。这里设有伍德罗·威尔逊总统国家纪念馆。威尔逊在20世纪初叶当选为美国总统，当时，美国刚刚开始引领世界。这座大楼以罗纳德·里根的名字命名。里根在两次世界大战期间长大，并在总统任期内开创了美国历史的新纪元。这座大楼里还陈列着一小块柏林墙的石头，柏林墙的拆除结束了东西德几十年的分裂，引发了至今仍左右世界发展的全球化潮流。

　　100年前，即20世纪初叶，很明显那个时代需要人们做出一些极其重要的抉择——关于国界和人权的选择。但是，在伍德罗·威尔逊时代，谁也无法预见历史变迁能导致柏林墙倒塌，更无法想象这段历史所特有的冲突与动荡。无论是波士顿还是北京，对世界各国人民而言，20世纪是一个取得了重大的进步，也为此付出沉重代价的时代。

　　今天，我们眺望新世纪的地平线。在开展此次对话时，我们有必要对影响未来21世纪的问题进行回顾和反思。是让当前金融危机之类的事件拖累经济停滞不前，抑或通过我们之间的合作，创造均衡和可持续发展，帮助更多的人摆脱贫困并创造更为普遍的繁荣？是让对能源的需求导致竞争和气候变化，抑或通过建立伙伴关系生产清洁能源来保护我们的地球？是让核武器无限制扩散，抑或达成新的共识，把核能仅用于和平目的？是让极端主义者煽动冲突和分裂的图谋得逞，抑或团结一致，共保安全？是仅根据差异来定义不同国家和民族，抑或找到必要的共同点，应对共同挑战并给予每一个人应有的尊严？