Interview: China-U.S. engagement crucial to global future, says Pakistani economist

Gavin Newsom (2nd L, Front), governor of the U.S. state of California, greets a visitor at the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 26, 2023. (Xinhua/Xing Guangli)

If these two economies don't engage with each other, then the world cannot achieve a resilient economic and prosperous future.

by Ali Jaswal

ISLAMABAD, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- As the biggest economies, China and the United States have to engage with each other to create a resilient and sustainable future for the world, a Pakistani economist has said.

A resilient world future "can only happen if these two economies engage with each other," Mahmood Khalid, a senior research economist at Macro Policy Lab of the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, an Islamabad-based think tank, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

He said China is a growth motor for the whole world and has become a significant trading partner with almost every country, adding that China is crucial in providing technology-oriented, more cost-efficient solutions in the international supply chain.

Therefore, if these two economies don't engage with each other, then the world cannot achieve a resilient economic and prosperous future, he said. "It's not just about the U.S. and China now. It's about the whole world, so we see it as an important milestone."

Regarding the global economic scenario, he said the current environment is not quite conducive to economic growth, while things could further exacerbate if the two leading economies do not cooperate.

Applauding the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, the economist said the country is striving for a shared prosperity and future of the world.

A better global future is possible only if the leading economies and the bigger nations realize the importance of multilateralism, Khalid said.

The world has witnessed the successes of multilateralism on platforms like the World Trade Organization and the United Nations, under which "there are certain international conventions that every country has ratified, like climate change and intellectual property rights," he said.