Chinese president urges stronger high-level dialogue mechanism with U.S.

5th Round of China-U.S.

Strategic Economic Dialogue

Backgrounder: China-U.S. Strategic Economic

Dialogue

BEIJING, Dec. 5 (Chinese media) -- Chinese President Hu

Jintao on Friday called for a stronger high-level dialogue mechanism with the

United States.

"China and the United States should continue to step

up their high-level dialogue mechanism for substantive cooperation and stronger

bilateral relations," Hu told visiting U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.

Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) meets

with United States Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson at the Great Hall of

the People in Beijing, capital of China, Dec. 5, 2008. (Chinese media

Photo)
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Their meeting came after China and the United States

concluded their two-day Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED), which produced

40agreements in areas ranging from finance and trade to energy and the

environment.

Included in Paulson's high-profile delegation were

the U.S. secretaries of agriculture, labor, health and the environment, among

others.

Led by Vice Premier Wang Qishan, the Chinese

delegation included more than 10 ministers from such areas as finance,

development and reform, agriculture, labor, commerce, health, the environment

and the central bank.

"The two delegations should summarize the good

experience and practice of the SED talks and jointly implement the consensus and

agreements that are reached," Hu said.

Initiated by the two presidents in 2006, the biannual

SED is the highest level of bilateral economic dialogue.

Hailing the positive outcomes of the talks, Hu said

the dialogue was a success because the talks stuck to comprehensive, strategic

and long-term issues and served bilateral economic and trade cooperation, as

well as the overall bilateral relationship.

The successes also lay in the fact that the two sides

took care of both nations' interests and concerns, broadened fields of bilateral

cooperation and cultivated new areas for growth, Hu said.

"The dialogue helped the two nations increase mutual

trust, narrow their differences and properly address the problems arising from

the cooperation," Hu said.

"China-U.S. relations now stand in an important era

connecting the past and the future," President said.

China values its ties with the United States and sees

the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties as an opportunity, Hu said.

"Let's maintain the direction of the constructive

cooperation, step up dialogue, increase mutual trust, expand cooperation and

take the bilateral relationship to a new high," Hu said.

Paulson said the launch of the SED was a farsighted

strategic decision made by the presidents of the two nations.

The just-concluded dialogue was the final SED meeting

for Paulson, who will step down next January.

Paulson, a key figure in establishing the SED

mechanism, hailed the role of the SED in boosting bilateral trade relations and

promoting the world economy over the past two years.

The SED succeeded in dealing with the strategic

economic relations, addressing the complicated and subtle issues and promoting

the bilateral ties, he said.

On U.S.-China relationship, Paulson said it was one

of the most important bilateral relations in the world.

He reaffirmed that the United States would like to

work with China to further boost their ties.