Sheng Huaren, vice-chairman of China's National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, met U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney in the White House on Wednesday and both sides agreed to further consolidate and deepen inter-parliamentary exchanges.

Sheng told Cheney that the Chinese side attaches great importance to the Sino-U.S. ties and has always been treating bilateral relationship from strategic and long-term perspectives.

Sheng, who led an NPC delegation to attend the fourth meeting with the U.S. Senate under a parliamentary exchange mechanism on Tuesday and Wednesday, said China is willing to continue to work with the U.S. to implement consensus reached between Chinese President Hu Jintao and U.S. President George W. Bush, and to make joint efforts to ensure a sound and steady development of constructive bilateral cooperation.

Cheney, who is also president of the U.S. Senate, spoke highly of the outcome of the fourth meeting between the NPC and the U.S. Senate, saying that he will continue to support this important parliamentary exchange mechanism.

The top Chinese lawmaker reaffirmed China's principled position on the Taiwan issue, noting that the current situation across the Taiwan Strait is very complicated and sensitive. He hoped that the U.S. would stick to its commitments to China on the issue and firmly oppose and contain "Taiwan independence" to safeguard the overall bilateral relationship and maintain peace and stability across the strait.

Sheng also briefed Cheney on the positive outcome of the meeting between the lawmakers, saying that it is of great importance for the bilateral relationship to further consolidate and deepen substantial dialogues between lawmakers.

Noting that the U.S.-China relations is one of the most important bilateral relations in the world, Cheney stressed that the continuous development of the relationship is not only significant to the prosperity and stability of the two countries, but also conducive to maintaining peace and stability in the world.

He said that the U.S. side understands the importance and sensitivity of the Taiwan issue and will continue to handle it in accordance with the principles laid out in the three joint communiques between the U.S. and China.

Source: Xinhua