Recent Government Advocacy Engagements

AmCham China Meets with President of Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries Lin Songtian

On July 15, 2022, AmCham China President Michael Hart and member company executives met with Mr. Lin Songtian, President of Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries to deliver the 2022 American Business in China White Paper (White Paper). At the conference, Michael delivered an exclusive briefing on the 2022 White Paper, recent virtual D.C. outreach meetings, and the Social Impact Initiative. President Lin Songtian praised AmCham China’s role in the development of US-China economic and trade relations and encouraged the member companies in attendance to expand the Chinese market. The two sides also exchanged views on issues such as US-China relations and the substantial contribution of foreign companies to China’s high-quality development.

AmCham China Meets with Chinese Vice Minister of Science and Technology Zhang Guangjun

On July 21, AmCham China President Michael Hart along with a delegation of member company representatives met with Vice Minister of Science and Technology Zhang Guangjun. The two sides exchanged views on US-China science and technology relations, science and innovation policies, and research and development by multinational companies in China.

Vice Minister Zhang Guangjun noted that amity between the people holds the key to sound state-to-state relations. He said the Ministry of Sciences and Technology deeply appreciates the efforts of AmCham China to promote exchanges and cooperation between American companies and China, noting that the Chamber’s efforts have built a bridge for enhancing friendly exchanges between the two countries. He remarked that as the two sides are at different stages of development and have different cultures and systems, during the course of exchanges, differences will inevitably arise. But practice has proved that exchanges and cooperation are mutually beneficial and lead to win-win results for both sides. At present, the world faces the universal challenges including climate change, energy shortages, the COVID-19 pandemic, and other issues. As responsible major countries, the US and China should work together and jointly tackle global challenges through enhanced scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation in order to create greater well-being for not only the people of the two countries, but also to make greater contributions to the progress of mankind.

Zhang said going forward, the Chinese government will implement a more open, inclusive and mutually beneficial development strategy for international scientific and technological cooperation. China will continue to promote international scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation with more open-minded measures, improve China’s ecological environment for science and technology innovation, and provide more opportunities for R&D and innovation in China by companies from all over the world, including the United States. Zhang concluded that the Ministry of Science and Technology is willing to strengthen ties with the American Chamber of Commerce in China and US technology companies in Beijing to promote practical cooperation between the two industries and boost the development of bilateral relations.

For his part, Michael Hart provided a briefing on the American Business in China White Paper (White Paper) released by AmCham China this past spring. He said the development of US companies in China is of positive significance to both the US and China. He noted that despite the challenges of the pandemic, China’s market opportunities, business environment, and long-term development strategy are still attractive to Chamber of Commerce members, and China is still a priority market for many members to invest in. He encouraged the two governments to explore the establishment of a results-oriented bilateral exchange mechanism at all levels to create a favorable environment for bilateral enterprises to carry out trade, investment, and R&D cooperation. He pledged that AmCham China will continue to serve as a bridge to enhance mutual understanding between the two countries. The representatives of the AmCham China member enterprises present also put forward suggestions on how to participate in China’s scientific and technological innovation development and carry out exchanges and cooperation with China.