US to foster China ties, Trump says

Yang calls for the two countries to better coordinate on regional issues

US-China relations are very important, and the US is willing to ramp up cooperation with China to promote their progress, US President Donald Trump told visiting Chinese top diplomat Yang Jiechi in Washington on Friday.

In his talks with State Councilor Yang, Trump said he agreed that the two sides should follow through on the consensuses and outcomes reached in his talks in Beijing with President Xi Jinping in November.

Trump said that his state visit to China was very successful, according to a Foreign Ministry news release on Saturday.

Trump asked Yang to convey his sincere greetings to Xi, who had asked Yang to convey his sincere greetings to Trump.

Yang said the two countries should increase coordination in their talks in key international and regional issues, including the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, and properly manage and control their differences and sensitive issues to ensure bilateral relations yield more positive outcomes in the new year.

Early on Thursday, Yang told US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson that China has been committed to the denuclearization, peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula, and the ultimate settlement of disputes through dialogue and consultation.

Yang said Beijing is ready to maintain communication and coordination with Washington on the basis of mutual trust and respect so as to seek a proper solution to the peninsula issue, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said on Saturday.

In his talks with Trump, Yang said he hopes the two sides will follow through on the consensus and outcomes achieved by the two presidents during their Beijing meeting, and that they commit to expanding trade, military, law enforcement, counter-narcotics, people-to-people and subnational exchanges and cooperation.

The two sides should remain in close contact and make the second round of the four cabinet-level dialogues between China and the US a success.

Both countries agreed that they will hold their next Diplomatic & Security Dialogue in the second quarter of this year, and that the second round of dialogues on economic, social and people-to-people exchanges, and law enforcement and cybersecurity will be held within the year, Lu said.

Lu also said that during Yang's visit, the US agreed that the two countries have made positive progress in dealing with their bilateral ties last year, and Washington is willing to strengthen cooperation with Beijing to build a fruitful and constructive relationship.

The four high-level dialogue mechanisms were established by the two presidents during their MaraLago meeting in April at Palm Beach, Florida.

Yang was making a two-day visit to Washington that began on Thursday.

huanxinzhao@chinadailyusa.com