Maurice Greenberg, chairman of Starr Companies and vice chairman of the board of directors of the National Committee on United States-China Relations, speaks at the Vision China forum themed "China-US relations: 40 years & beyond" in New York, the United States, Sept. 17, 2019. A group of top diplomats, experts and business leaders from the United States and China have called for strengthening bilateral ties and managing differences at a forum here on U.S.-China relations. (Xinhua/Han Fang)

NEW YORK, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- A group of top diplomats, experts and business leaders from the United States and China have called for strengthening bilateral ties and managing differences at a forum here on U.S.-China relations.

"For China and the United States, the right way ahead is to expand cooperation on the basis of mutual benefit, manage differences on the basis of mutual respect and develop a relationship based on coordination, cooperation and stability," Chinese Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai said in a keynote speech Tuesday at the forum themed "China-US relations: 40 years & beyond."

Many others at the forum agreed with Cui on the significance of resolving differences and advancing bilateral ties.

Referring to the prolonged U.S.-China trade disputes, Maurice R. Greenberg, chairman of Starr Companies and vice chairman of the board of directors of the National Committee on United States-China Relations, said it is in the national interests of both countries to come up with a resolution.

Zhou Shuchun, editor-in-chief of China Daily, said that China and the United States broke the ice 40 years ago when both countries had virtually no interaction. There's no reason today in a world of greater interdependence for both sides not to find common ground, he said.

Stephen Roach, a senior fellow at Yale University's Jackson Institute of Global Affairs, suggested that the two sides take a more innovative approach in addressing the trade disputes.

Connie Sweeris, a veteran table tennis player who experienced the ice-breaking "ping-pong diplomacy" between China and the United States in the 1970s, also shared her perspectives on cementing bilateral ties.

"We need to be ambassadors for peace," said Sweeris.

The forum was a Vision China event hosted by China Daily and Bank of China, and gathered over 200 guests from China and the United States.

Since Vision China launched in 2018, its events have featured global opinion leaders invited to discuss China-related topics of international significance.