China's Xi says to push forward co-op with US

BEIJING - China's Vice-President Xi Jinping on Monday said that China is willing to work with the United States to push forward their cooperative partnership under the new situation, so as to benefit the two peoples and world peace.

Xi and former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger attended a ceremony marking the 40th anniversary of former US President Richard Nixon's visit to China and the release of the Shanghai Communique.

In his speech, Xi reviewed the course of Sino-US relations and expressed his wish for the continuation of bilateral cooperation.

The vice president said that China and the United States have gained a lot of experiences from the 40-year history of bilateral ties, one of which is that both sides should always adhere to the three Sino-US joint communiques.

The two countries should constantly enhance mutual understanding and  cultivate and deepen strategic trust, Xi said.

"Under the new situation, we should unswervingly develop the Sino-US cooperative partnership based on mutual respect and mutual benefit, in accordance with the important consensus reached by President Hu Jintao and President Obama," he said.

The vice president urged the two sides to respect each other's core and major interests, as well as properly handle their differences, in order to keep the proper direction of bilateral ties.

He also urged the two sides to strengthen contact at all levels, promote cooperation in the economic and trade fields, and enhance coordination on international and regional issues.

"To promote the healthy and stable development of Sino-US relations is not only the shared responsibility of the two countries but also the common expectation of the international community," Xi said.

China is ready to work with the United States to push forward bilateral ties in the spirit of "seize the day, seize the hour," he said.

As a witness to Nixon's China tour, Kissinger echoed Xi's speech, noting that world peace requires cooperation between the United States and China.

Kissinger said that the prospects of Sino-US relations will not  change, although there will be some commotion during the US presidential elections.

Both the Obama Administration and the Republican Party prefer a positive relationship with China, he said.

Then-President of the United States Richard Nixon made a formal visit to China on Feb 21 to 28, 1972, with a China-US joint communique released in Shanghai on the last day. The visit opened a door for Sino-US relations that had been closed for many years.

The two countries officially established diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial-level on January 1, 1979.