Top legislator calls on China, US to handle bilateral ties from strategic height

BEIJING - China's top legislator Li Zhanshu on Wednesday called on China and the United States to view and handle bilateral ties from a strategic height and an overall perspective to ensure their development goes along the right track.

Li, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), made the remarks while meeting with a US congress delegation, led by US senator Steve Daines.

The relationship between China and the United States is of great importance to both countries and the international community, Li said.

Just as Chinese President Xi Jinping has pointed out, cooperation is the only viable choice for China and the United States and a better future would only be achieved through win-win cooperation, he said.

He called on both countries to enhance strategic communication, focus on dialogue and cooperation, and manage differences and sensitive issues so as to ensure the development of bilateral ties along the right track.

Hailing the sound cooperation between the legislative bodies of both countries, Li said China's NPC stands ready to work with the US Congress to give full play to the exchange mechanism, conduct candid dialogues, respect each other's core interests and major concerns, strengthen in-depth understanding at different levels and promote cooperation in wide-ranging areas.

Daines said the US-China relationship is of vital importance, expressing the willingness to do more work to boost mutual trust and bilateral cooperation.