Commerce Secretary Gary Locke Opening Remarks at 21st Annual U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT) I’d like to welcome Vice Premier Wang and your delegation to Washington, DC during this holiday season. As co-chairs of the JCCT, we are stewards of the U.S.-China trade relationship. Stewardship is defined as the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care.
That “something” is a bilateral trade relationship which is robust and supports millions of jobs for our people. The JCCT is the vehicle where we exercise this careful and responsible management.
This is a profound responsibility as U.S.-China trade grows in both opportunity and complexity.
Pick up the newspaper on any given day and you'll surely see a catalog of the latest disagreements between China and the United States. But those in this room know that our disagreements do not define us. Our disagreements are in fact the inevitable byproduct of two trading partners whose commercial relationship has been growing steadily for four decades.
There are so many areas of mutual interest for the U.S. and China to pursue. There is: I have no doubt these efforts will lead to a successful and productive dialogue today.
Thank you.
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce
