Parliamentary exchange is part and parcel of the state relationship between China and the United States, Sheng Huaren, vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress (NPC), said on Tuesday.

China's NPC set up exchange mechanisms with the US House of Representative and Senate in 1999 and 2004 respectively, through which the two sides have had candid exchanges of views on bilateral relations and issues of common concern, increased mutual understanding and trust, and pushed forward the Sino-US relationship of constructive cooperation, Sheng said at a reception hosted by the US Senate in his honor.

As both China and the United States are influential countries in the world, he said, the importance of Sino-US relations go beyond the scope of the bilateral relationships.

The constructive and cooperative relationship between China and US will usher in a new stage, Sheng said, so long as the two countries treat and manage the bilateral ties from strategic and long-term perspectives, abide by principles defined in the three Sino-US joint communiques, enhance mutual political trust, and enlarge exchanges and cooperation in various fields while taking care of each other's concerns, properly managing differences, and removing all hindrances.

In their speeches at the reception, US Senate President pro tempore Ted Stevens, Senator Daniel K. Inouye, co-chair of the Senate's US-China parliamentary group, and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said a good US-China relationship is not only conducive to the interests of the two countries, but also a major factor in contributing to peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region and the world as a whole.

US President George W. Bush's meeting with Sheng Tuesday morning demonstrates the importance the US side attaches to contacts between parliaments of the two countries, they said.

The exchange mechanism between the US Senate and China's NPC and its effective operation are significant in strengthening bilateral dialogue and exchanges, as well as enhancing mutual understanding and trust, they added.

Some 300 people attended the reception, including members of both chambers of the US Congress and the Committee of 100.

Sheng arrived in Washington on Monday afternoon, at the invitation of Inouye and Stevens, who is also chairman of the US-China parliamentary group in the US Senate.

Source: Xinhua