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Clinton urges China to buy US Treasuries

By Li Xiaokun (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-02-23 07:31

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton yesterday wrapped up her three-day visit, reaching broad consensus with the Chinese leadership on a wide range of issues and urging Beijing to keep buying US Treasury bonds.

"By continuing to support American Treasury instruments, the Chinese are recognizing our interconnection.

"It would not be in China's interest if we were unable to get our economy moving," Clinton said at the US embassy shortly before departing for Washington.

"We are truly going to rise or fall together. We are in the same boat and, thankfully, we are rowing in the same direction."

Beijing has continued investment in US government securities, which will help the US administration fund the massive $787 billion stimulus package that US President Barack Obama signed into law last Tuesday.

Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said on Saturday after a meeting with Clinton that China wants its foreign exchange reserves - the world's largest at $1.95 trillion - invested safely, with good value and liquidity.

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He said future decisions on using them would be based on those principles, but added that China wanted to continue to work with the US.

President Hu Jintao, in his meeting with Clinton on Saturday, pledged to push forward Sino-US relations.

"Now it is more important than any time in the past to deepen and develop China-US relations amid the spreading financial crisis and increasing global challenges," Hu said.

"I warmly welcome President Obama to visit China at his earliest convenience," Hu said.

Clinton told Hu she felt it was like the beginning of "a new era" of bilateral relations characterized by "positive cooperation".

Earlier on Saturday, Clinton and Yang said at a joint press conference that the two nations would build a "double-track" strategic and economic dialogue mechanism to discuss concerns of either politics or the economy.

Details about the new mechanism are not clear but Clinton said she and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner would be involved in it.

The two presidents are expected to announce a decision when they meet at the G20 summit in London in April, she added.

Fighting global warming jointly with China was a top issue for Clinton's Beijing visit.

At the news conference, she said the US and China would build "an important partnership" to develop clean energy technologies and speed up the transition to low carbon economies.

Clinton also visited a church yesterday, talked with representatives of Chinese women and participated in web chat organized by China Daily.

Beijing was the last leg of Clinton's four-nation Asian tour that also took her to Japan, Indonesia and South Korea.