US-China ties on new level: author(2)

Obama, Kerry and other US leaders have welcomed the concept, but pundits on both sides believe it needs to be enriched with concrete steps.

Like many others, Lardy sees it as a proposal for how the two countries, one an existing power and one a rising power, should manage their relationship through cooperation and competition so it doesn't lead to a big-power rivalry that has been common throughout history and often led to war.

"So the underlined objective is a big strategic one, but how to actually realize it is, I think, the challenge," said Lardy.

He said the two countries are closely aligned on some key international issues such as the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.

He also noted that China has been putting pressure on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to resume the stalled Six-Party Talks.

"China has long supported the idea of denuclearization. That's certainly the US goal," Lardy said.

"They've also taken some very important steps in the financial sector," said Lardy.

"I think this is an area where United States and Chinese interests do overlap to a considerable degree," he said. Lardy — author of the 2012 book Sustaining China's Economic Growth after the Global Financial Crisis — said he was impressed by economic reforms made by the new Chinese leaders.

He said they understand that the growth model of the previous 10 years is no longer effective, and they have rejected flooding the economy with credit to create a new boom when growth slows.

The leadership has signaled quite clearly that they are prepared to accept slower growth as they launch reforms they think will lead to a strong period of growth in the future, Lardy said.