Are the U.S. and China headed for a “new great power relationship?” In a rare and exclusive interview with Christiane Amanpour, Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. Cui Tiankai said that it’s “obvious” that the countries need each other.

At the heart of China’s request for a new type of big power relationship with the US is a demand for greater symmetry in bilateral negotiations, writes Pang Zhongying. Only a roughly symmetrical relationship can be stable.

With a new type of bilateral relationship, China and the US should achieve trust in politics, economic complementarity, cultural exchange, military interaction and diplomatic consultation, writes Yu Sui.

The Xi-Obama Sunnylands summit came at a crucial time in the bilateral relationship. The weekend meeting, which featured a variety of discussions including a new great-power relationship and increasing mutual trust, was seen as a step in the right direction for Sino-US relations.

As a rising power, China must face growing frictions. To peacefully progress, Zhang Tuosheng explains, China must do three things. First, it must utilize the effective policies since “reform and opening up.” Next, it must seek to redefine the “great power structure” of the world on multiple levels. Finally, it must build its means to manage crises.

Existing problems in the Sino-US relationship should not be considered as barriers for building a new type of Sino-U.S. relations, but should be taken as the driving power, says Chen Jimin.

The Xi-Obama Summit at Sunnylands provided an opportunity for the leaders of two global powers to confront challenges facing their nations. While many hope for an optimistic relationship moving forward, Chen Xiangyang encourages a sober approach as the long-term relationship develops.

Su Xiaohui writes that China and the US have agreed that the zero-sum game will harm both sides’ interests, and will cooperate in avoiding a Thucydides trap. Specifically, in the process of improving military exchange and managing territorial issues, the two countries may find a way to finally establish a new type of relationship.

China and the United States both have termed last week’s summit between presidents Xi Jinping and Barack Obama at Sunnylands, California, as a great success. Among the wide range of issues discussed by the two leaders was Sino-US military relationship.

Back in the 1980s, Deng Xiaoping made the remark that China-US relations must be based on mutual trust or they could not move forward. Thirty-odd years have passed, but the trust between the two countries remains somewhat elusive.