BREWER, Maine — A distinguished guest visited the Bangor area on Tuesday at a time marked by rising tensions between two world powers, the United States and China.
Ambassador Ping Huang, Consul General for China in New York, along with his deputies and other officials traveled to Bangor to talk with state officials, businesses, and community members who share common interests with China.
The recent spy-balloon debacle and rising anti-Asian sentiments did not dissuade the diplomatic corps. They said they hoped to discuss ways to improve relations as they have a vested interest in business and educational initiatives.
When asked about the strained relationship between the two world powers, Ambassador Huang hopes there is a path to mutual understanding.
"We both are major powers in the world. Very important countries and this is also the most important bilateral relations in the whole world. No matter what we have, we are different, we need to sit down and talk."
Over lunch at the High Tide Restaurant in Brewer, Director of the Chinese Language & Culture Center of Maine Jing Zhang said the key is to empower relationships through communication and to eliminate language and cultural differences as barriers.
The plan is to develop a stronger presence in the community, making Chinese and English language classes more accessible to those as young as two years old.
The center said it's prepared to provide this service through its recent addition of 10 bilingual teachers to facilitate classes. The school plans to have an extension from Bangor to Manhattan, New York.
Consul General Huang, who represents the region, said it's an important step to helping people in both cultures to better understand each other.
"We have competition, but in the meantime, we have lots of things to do. Together we have common interests, and I think we will have a lot more common interests than differences," Huang said. "We should talk and carefully manage the differences and find chances to cooperate."
The Consul General also plans to visit the Old Town Paper Mill while he is in town. The mill is owned by a Chinese company.