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By Nick Mordowanec
Staff Writer
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California Governor Gavin Newsom is receiving praise from a Chinese publication that has previously berated officials and politicians from the United States.
On Monday, Newsom began his seven-day trip to China, with the backdrop of climate change as topping the agenda. He is scheduled to visit Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Beijing and Shanghai, as well as the province of Jiangsu.
A new editorial published Monday by the Global Times, a nationalistic English-language tabloid published by the propaganda department of the ruling Communist Party, states that Newsom is one of the most esteemed U.S. officials to make the journey overseas—citing the governor's first trip there as one of pragmatism as the U.S.-China relationship overall has been one of angst and vitriol in recent years.
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"To be honest, Chinese people currently lack faith in Washington as a whole and have distrust toward some U.S. politicians. However, the welcome for Governor Newsom's visit is sincere and warm, as 'it is always a pleasure to greet a friend from afar,'" the editorial states.
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The Global Times' editorial also states that Newsom "developed a deep connection with China" when he was formerly mayor of San Francisco, commending him on attempting to make further inroads when China and the U.S. have more so been combative.
"It is anticipated that Governor Newsom's visit will yield significant results, not only expanding exchanges and cooperation in a variety of areas, including commerce, climate change, technology, education, culture, and youth, but also carrying forward China-California traditional friendship and cooperative relationship" the editorial states.
It adds: "It is no exaggeration to say that this traditional friendship is a significant catalyst for mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and mutually beneficial cooperation between China and the U.S. It holds great significance not only for the China-US relationship but also for global peace and stability."
Newsom, who is accompanied by his wife, Jennifer, on the trip will also discuss economic development and tourism in addition to combating xenophobia.
China and California are the second- and fifth-largest economies in the world, respectively. Most Chinese immigrants, or about 32 percent, presently call California home.
"California and China hold the keys to solving the climate crisis....Our decades-long work together proves what we can accomplish together—cleaning the air, accelerating the transition to electric vehicles, protecting people from extreme weather and conserving lands and oceans," Newsom said in a statement last week.
Robert Sutter, professor of practice of international affairs at the Elliott School of George Washington University, told Newsweek via phone on Monday that Newsom's political open-mindedness seems antithetical to the positions espoused by many elected U.S. officials who view China strictly as an adversary.
Newsom is described by Sutter as a "very important actor" in the political scene who has not committed to any hardline policies at China's detriment.
"It's really remarkable how most politicians in the United States take very strong positions that are critical of China," Sutter said. "And I assume that Mr. Newsom doesn't do that.... And the other thing is, Chinese authorities are trying to be more open in a lot of ways."
He alluded to how Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer recently led a bipartisan delegation to China. This "working of the contacts" as Sutter describes is aimed to reverse a negative trend in U.S.-China diplomacy, encouraging points of agreement while not compromising on broader held beliefs.
Kate Logan, associate director of climate at the Asia Society Policy Institute, told Newsweek via phone on Monday that Newsom's visit can clearly be viewed as hugely symbolic and another step in a positive direction for both nations as topics including offshore wind, electric vehicles and manufacturing are being discussed.
The relationship between Chinese and California officials dates back to the Arnold Schwarzenegger governorship and was continued by former Governor Jerry Brown, she added.
While California played "a key role" with several conversations leading to the Paris Climate Accords in 2015, some of that push for more ambitious policies may have been stunted by both countries' long history of broader tensions exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and, more recently, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi traveling to Taiwan.
"It is increasingly challenging but I think both countries do understand it is their interests to come up with some model for cooperation that is more pragmatic and institutionalized," Logan said. "Other issues will continue to be on the table and an ongoing factor. Industrial policy complicates things when making other policies.... Cautious optimism is perhaps the way to go."
Meanwhile, the Global Times, whose views do not always reflect official policy in China, previously has accused the U.S. of "inciting the risk of war on a global scale." It has also reveled in political squabbles over issues like foreign aid, including dissention in the U.S. House of Representatives regarding helping to fund Ukraine's defense against Russia in the ongoing war.
China has also been publicly vocal about urging "calm and restraint" in the Middle East as the war between Israel and Hamas escalates—a position shared by progressive lawmakers in Congress.
"I think it's hard to be pragmatic when you feel you're under enormous challenge," Sutter said. "And the U.S. government—I think this is pretty clear—sees enormous challenges coming from China, from a strategic point of view, from an economic point of view, and from a governance point of view. In all those respects, there's multifaceted challenges coming from China and it's really dangerous.
"And the Chinese act like they didn't have anything to do with this, which of course is just totally wrong and false and they're trying to be deceptive on this. So, the trust that you have with China is very low because in the past, they said they were being benign and so forth and they weren't. They were out to get us and they still are."
Sutter said the last six years of the relationship across two U.S. administrations has further weathered ties and caused officials to look at China even more as a threat. A consistent look at the daunting challenges while defending America from an onslaught "of a menace in a very broad sense" is part of diplomacy.
"We've got to stop these trends and that's what I think the U.S. government is about and has been about for some time: building strengths at home, building arrangements abroad that can work with allies and partners and help us to counter these challenges that China poses," he said.
He continued: "That's the underlying reality. It's not about prestige, it's not that we're upset. It's fundamental. What kind of system is going to prevail in the world in the future? What kind of system are your children going to live in? That's the kind of thinking that has been taking place for several years in Washington."
Newsweek reached out via email to Newsom's office for comment.
Update 10/23/23, 12:42 p.m. ET: This story was updated with comment from Kate Logan.
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