1 of 4 | Tibet Supporters protest the visit of Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping outside the White House in Washington on February 14, 2012. UPI/Kevin Dietsch |
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WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- U.S. President Obama said the United States welcomed China's rise on the world stage, saying a strong China is good for the region and the world.
"[We] welcome China's peaceful rise, that we believe that a strong and prosperous China is one that can help to bring stability at prosperity to the region and to the world," Obama said during a joint media opportunity in Washington Tuesday with Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, the heir apparent to the country's presidency.
During his three years as president, Obama said he developed a strong working relationship with Chinese President Hu Jintao, who is barred from seeking re-election.
Obama said he and Hu tried to advance a cooperative relationship based on mutual interests and respect and "is not only in the interests of the United States and China, but also in the interests of the region and the world."
Xi, speaking through an interpreter, said the main purpose of his visit to the United States was to implement an agreement Obama reached with Hu and "to do some work to move forward the China-U.S. relationship along in the right direction … that is, for our two countries to work together to build a cooperative partnership based on mutual respect and mutual interests."
Xi's visit comes shortly after China and Russia vetoed a U.N. Security Council draft resolution on Syria that, among other things, called for Syrian President Bashar Assad to relinquish power and end the horrific crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators. The two countries also have policy differences over Iran and economic issues, and the United States also has had long-standing concerns about human rights practices in China.
"We have tried to emphasize because of China's extraordinary development over the last two decades that with expanding power and prosperity also comes increased responsibilities," Obama said. "And so we want to work with China to make sure that everybody is working by the same rules of the road when it comes to the world economic system, and that includes ensuring that there is a balanced trade flow between not only the United States and China, but around world."
"It also means that on critical issues like human rights, we will continue to emphasize what we believe is the importance of recognizing the aspirations and rights of all people," Obama said.
