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by Xinhua Writer Zhu Junqing
BEIJING, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- It is natural that Americans have developed a more positive image toward China in recent years, with 50 percent having a favorable opinion of the Asian giant, the highest rating since 1989, scholars and experts said.
A Gallup poll conducted on Feb.1-5 and released Friday showed that half of Americans said they have a favorable opinion of China, up from 44 percent in 2016 and 41 percent in 2012.
This is the most positive result in Gallup trends since a 72 percent reading in February 1989, taken days after former U.S. President George H. W. Bush returned from a diplomatic visit to China.
Fan Yongpeng, an associate professor with the China Institute at Fudan University, said an improvement of American attitudes toward China is normal given the growing presence of the Asian country in a number of fields.
Chen Fengying, a research fellow at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations, has a similar view.
"Different from the past, China's rising economic strength has weighted on the United States, even the whole world," she said. "Against the backdrop of sluggish economic performance around the world, the American people began to focus on China, whose economic influence could impact any other countries, including the United States."
Moreover, she said, "China proposed public services such as the Belt and Road Initiative and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) are being recognized and welcomed by the world, while the United States and some European countries tend to close doors and counter globalization, resorting to unilateralism, protectionism and conservatism."
"In global governance, China has become an active participant and builder...China's blue print is not only for its own development but also for the world as a whole," Chen added.
For the poll based on telephone interviews with a random sample of 1,035 adults aged 18 and older, it may be hasty to draw a decisive conclusion, but it is a reflection of ordinary people's opinion, a majority of whom for a long time have a favorable impression of China, especially of the traditional Chinese culture.
Qian Wenrong, executive director of American Studies Center at the China Foundation for International Studies, said the Gallup poll results are "in striking contrast with the American media whose coverage of China is overwhelmingly negative and has been for decades."
During his campaign, Trump played the China card and taken the rising Asian power as an imaginary enemy.
In Chen's opinion, "this is a process from bad to good. During the almost one year of campaigning, getting to know China and paying attention to China have become a general trend in the United States."
Moreover, as the United States is now facing crises in its political system, society, economy and culture, it is easier for its people to see the merits of other countries like China, both Fan and Chen point out.
The recent phone call between Chinese President Xi Jinping with his U.S. counterpart was a good first step for fostering dialogue between the two sides, experts said.
It is expected that with increasing interaction and exchanges, the world's two largest economies will work together toward a new type of major country relations based on the principles of non-confrontation, non-conflict, mutual respect and win-win cooperation.
