China-U.S. Economic and Strategic Dialogue opens in Washington

WASHINGTON, July 27 (Xinhua) -- The China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED), the first of its kind between the world's biggest developing country and biggest developed country, opened here on Monday.

Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan (6th L, Front), State Councilor  Dai Bingguo (5th L, Front), U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton  (5th R, Front), U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner (4th R,  Front) and other officials pose for a group photograph before the  opening ceremony of the China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue  (S&ED) in Washington, the United States, July 27, 2009. The China- U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED), the first of its kind  between the world's biggest developing country and biggest developed  country, opened here on Monday. (Xinhua/Zhang Yan)

On behalf of Chinese President Hu Jintao and invited by U.S. President Barack Obama, Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan and State Councilor Dai Bingguo participated in the opening ceremony in Ronald Reagan Building in downtown Washington, D.C..

In a congratulatory message to the opening ceremony of the dialogue read by Wang, Chinese President Hu Jintao said that both China and the United States shoulder important responsibilities on a host of major issues concerning peace and development of mankind.

As two countries with significant influence in the world, China and the United States also enjoy extensive common interests and broad space for cooperation, Hu said.

China and the United States, in the face of the complex and changing international economic and political situation, should endeavor to expand common ground, reduce differences, enhance mutual trust and strengthen cooperation through the Strategic and Economic Dialogue, he said.