CCG Conducts Track Two Visit to US
CCG | April 26 , 2025Delegation speaks at UNSC, Princeton, Harvard, and holds roundtables with CFR, Asia Society, Quincy Institute, CSIS, NCAFP, NCUSCR, etc.
From April 19 to 26, a delegation from the Center for China and Globalization (CCG) completed a week-long visit to the United States as President Donald Trump approached the 100-day mark of his second term and amid escalating bilateral trade tensions.
CCG was the first Chinese non-governmental think tank to visit the U.S. for public diplomacy since early April, when Washington raised tariffs on Chinese goods to as high as 245%—a record high since the start of the U.S.-China trade war.
The CCG delegation included
Henry Huiyao Wang, Founder & President, CCG
Miao Lu, Co-founder & Secretary-General, CCG
Victor Zhikai Gao, Vice President, CCG
Wang Yiwei, Jean Monnet Chair Professor, Renmin University; Non-resident Senior Fellow, CCG
He Zhipeng, Professor & Dean of Jilin University Law School
Zhu Yuanqing, Associate Professor at Southwest University of Political Science and Law
Li Juan, Associate Professor at Central South University
Zichen Wang, Research Fellow & Director for Int’l Comms, CCG; Candidate for mid-career Master in Public Policy (MPP), Princeton School of Public and International Affairs
Luo Yan, Director for Chinese Domestic Comms, CCG
Over the course of the week, the delegation visited key U.S. cities including New York, Washington D.C., and Boston. The group held extensive discussions with U.S. policymakers, scholars, business leaders, think tank experts, journalists, and representatives from international organisations. More than 20 in-depth dialogues were conducted in various formats, including bilateral meetings, roundtables, forums, and thematic discussions, facilitating robust and constructive exchanges.
High-Level Engagements and Keynote Addresses
On 19 April, Wang delivered a keynote speech at the first Princeton China Forum. He then joined an on-stage interview with Robert L. Hutchings, former U.S. Director for European Affairs with the National Security Council and Special Adviser to the Secretary of State.
On 23 April 2025, Henry Huiyao Wang spoke as a briefer on the United Nations Security Council Arria-formula meeting on “The Impact of Unilateralism and Bullying Practices on International Relations.” Wang was one of two briefers for the meeting, convened by the People’s Republic of China and moderated by Ambassador Fu Cong, China’s Permanent Representative to the United Nation.
Wang Huiyao speaks at United Nations Security Council
CCG delegation also held high-level meetings at the United Nations headquarters in New York, engaging with Amandeep Singh Gill, UN Under-Secretary-General and Secretary-General’s Envoy on Technology, as well as Sonja Bachmann, Team leader on Northeast Asia and the Pacific in the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs. The discussions covered global governance, emerging technologies, and multilateral cooperation.
On 24 April, at the time of the 2025 World Bank Group/IMF Spring Meetings, Wang was invited as the sole Chinese speaker to participate in Semafor’s 2025 World Economy Summit hosted in Washington, D.C. He was interviewed by Morgan Chalfant, Deputy Washington Bureau Chief at Semafor, during the session titled “The Next Era of Global Growth.”
Wang Huiyao’s Interview at Semafor’s 2025 World Economy Summit
On 26 April, Henry Huiyao Wang delivered a speech and engaged in a panel discussion at China Conference, a student-run conference at Harvard Kennedy School.
Wang Huiyao’s Speach at Harvard Kennedy School’s China Conference
Graham Allison, Douglas Dillon Professor of Government and the “Founding Dean” of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, was also among the panelists. During the conference, he showed Henry Huiyao Wang’s book, Escaping Thucydides’ Trap: Dialogue with Graham Allison on China-US Relations, which was published by Palgrave Macmillan in English and by CITIC Press Group with the facilitation of CCG in Chinese.
CCG-Hosted Strategic Symposium on Multilateral Governance
On 25 April, CCG convened a high-level U.S.-China think tank symposium at the Washington Plaza Hotel in the U.S. capital. Centred on the theme “Preserving a Single International Community for the Good of the Whole,” the event brought together nearly 30 senior experts from leading U.S. think tanks, academic institutions, international organisations, and private firms.
Participants included representatives from the RAND Corporation, Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), Asia Society, Pew Research Center, Brookings Institution, Quincy Institute, Global Peace Foundation, East-West Dialogue, Afghan Council for Public Affairs, OECD, Johns Hopkins University, American University, George Washington University, the University of Bologna, and Capstone LLC.
An imcomplete list of the attendees:
Colin Bradford, co-chair of China-West Dialogue and non-resident senior fellow with the Brookings
Wendy Cutler, Vice President, Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI); former U.S. Deputy Trade Representative
Erik Balsbaugh, senior advisor on campaign management and public affairs
Deborah Brautigam, Bernard L. Schwartz Professor of Political Economy and Director of the China Africa Research Initiative, Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS)
Gerard DiPippo, Acting Associate Director, China Research Center, RAND Corporation
Randall Henning, Professor of International Economic Relations, American University
James Lindsay, Mary and David Boies distinguished senior fellow in U.S. foreign policy and director of Fellowship Affairs, Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)
Victor (Yeqing) Li, Co-founder and President, Global Young Leaders Academy; International Executive Director, Global Peace Youth
Neil G. Ruiz, Head of New Research Initiatives, Pew Research Center
Aziz Sadat, former president, Afghanistan National Institute for Peace and Justice
Andreas Schaal, Director of Global Relations and Cooperation, OECD
Paola Subacchi, Professor of Political Economy, University of Bologna; Incoming Chair in Sovereign Debt, Sciences Po
Deepening Ties with Leading U.S. Think Tanks
Over the years, CCG has built enduring partnerships with numerous internationally renowned think tanks, maintaining open channels for dialogue and actively responding to global concerns. During its U.S. visit, CCG conducted a dense series of visits to the headquarters of several prominent U.S. think tanks, including the National Committee on American Foreign Policy (NCAFP), the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations (NCUSCR), the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), the Asia Society, the Quincy Institute, and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
These meetings covered a wide range of pressing topics, including the trajectory of U.S.-China relations, shifts in global governance, regional security risks, and prospects for economic cooperation. Key participants included:
Susan Elliott, President and CEO, the National Committee on American Foreign Policy (NCAFP); former U.S. Ambassador and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
Susan A. Thornton, Director, the Forum on Asia-Pacific Security, NCAFP; former U.S. acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs
Susan Shirk, former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of East Asia and Pacific Affairs; Chair Emerita, 21st Century China Center, UC San Diego
Yanzhong Huang, senior fellow for global health, the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)
Debra Eisenman, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, the Asia Society; Founding Director and Senior Fellow, the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI)
Paul Bascobert, President, Reuters News
Andrew Browne, China Hub Lead Partner, Brunswick Group
Lora Lumpe, Chief Executive Officer, the Quincy Institute
Scott Kennedy, senior adviser and trustee chair in Chinese Business and Economics, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
People-to-People and Business Engagements
During the visit, the CCG delegation met with leading civil society and business groups, including the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations (NCUSCR), the China Institute, and The Asia Group.
In meetings with senior executives, the CCG delegation held discussions on the current state and future trajectory of U.S.-China relations and exchanged views on enhancing cultural dialogue and expanding collaboration across multiple sectors. Key participants included:
Teng Shaojun, President, America China Public Affairs Institute
James Heimowitz, former President, China Institute
George Geh, CEO, China Institute
Dominic Ng, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, East West Bank
Steve Orlins, President, the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations (NCUSCR)
Meetings with Senior Chinese Diplomats in the U.S.
The CCG delegation held meetings with several senior Chinese diplomats, including Xie Feng, Chinese Ambassador to the United States; Fu Cong, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary and Permanent Representative of the People’s Republic of China to the United Nations; and Chen Li, Chinese Consul General in New York (Ambassadorial Rank).
CCG experts conducted productive working discussions with these diplomats, addressing the current complexities of U.S.-China relations, future developments, and recent CCG initiatives in research, policy advocacy, and international think tank exchange.
