Washington:
US President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao vowed closer cooperation on Wednesday on critical issues ranging from increasing trade between the world's two largest economies to fighting terrorism. But they also stood fast on differences, especially over human rights.
Obama acknowledged that differences on rights were "an occasional source of tension between our two governments."
He said at a joint news conference with Hu at the White House, "We have some core views as Americans about the universality of certain rights: freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of assembly." (
Read: Obama welcomes Hu Jintao with 21-gun salute)
Obama said he drove that home forcefully in his discussions with the Chinese leader, but "that doesn't prevent us from cooperating in these other critical areas."
President Barack Obama also said that China's peaceful rise is "good for the world, and it's good for America."
Both leaders, however, skirted the issue of differences between the two countries.
Instead, Obama said growth in China could lift millions of Chinese out of poverty and provide "enormous economic opportunity" to the US. He said a growing China can play a positive role on the world stage in issues like climate changes and Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD).
In a sign of the growing economic bonds between the two superpowers, Obama said the countries had made business deals that would mean $45 billion in new US exports. Obama also said China was taking significant steps to curtail the theft of intellectual property and expand US investment. (
Full Text: Obama's speech in Hu Jintao's honour) | (
Full Text: Hu Jintao's speech at the White House)
Obama said China had become "one of the top markets for American exports" and that these exports have helped to support a half million US jobs.
Hu said he and Obama had agreed to "share expanding common interests."
"We both agreed to further push forward the positive cooperative and comprehensive China-US relationship and commit to work together to build a China-U.S. cooperative partnership based on mutual respect and mutual benefit, so as to better benefit people in our own countries and the world over," Hu said.
Hu, speaking through a translator, said both countries should "respect each other's sovereignty, territorial integrity and development interests."
Hu also said that China is a developing country with an enormous population facing challenges in economic and social developments. He said human rights must be viewed under those circumstances.
Still, Hu said, China will continue efforts to "improve the lives of our people and promote democracy and rule of law."
As both countries continue to recover from the global economic crisis - a recovery that began in China well before it did in the US and other developed nations - the United States increasingly sees China as a market for its goods, Obama said.
"We want to sell you all kinds of stuff," Obama told Hu. "We want to sell you planes, we want to sell you cars, we want to sell you software...
"And as Chinese President Hu and his government refocuses the economy on expanding domestic demand, that offers opportunity for US businesses that ultimately translates into jobs."