WASHINGTON: China and the United States should become "constructive and co-operative partners" rather than just "stakeholders," according to visiting President Hu Jintao on Thursday.

"Through this visit, I further believe that under current international circumstances, China and the US have wide and important common strategic interests," he was quoted as saying by Foreign Ministry officials.

The comments were made at a meeting with US President George W. Bush's national security advisor Stephen Hadley.

Besides Hadley, Hu also met separately with US Vice-President Richard Cheney, Senator Ted Stevens and other congressmen at Blair House, the US president's official guesthouse.

Hu told Cheney that China and the US should push their constructive and co-operative relationship forward in the 21st century and make a joint contribution to maintaining peace, stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region as well as in the rest of the world.

Cheney said he supports the idea of building a strategic relationship with China.

When meeting congressmen, Hu expressed his appreciation for their support in developing Sino-US relations. China attaches great importance to developing ties with the US Congress, he noted.

Stevens said he visited China six decades ago as a US air force pilot to take part in the fight against the Japanese invaders.

He said that he was very happy to see China's progress in recent years and the development of Sino-US relations was of international significance.

(China Daily 04/22/2006 page2)