By Li Hong, People's Daily online

Welcome to China, President Barrack Obama.

His positive words that "the United States does not seek to contain China" while visiting Japan is resonating well with Chinese audience, the youth especially, as the U.S. president enjoys a popularity among them hardly matched by any of his predecessors. Obama is brilliantly thoughtful and visionary by claiming the relationship between the United States and China will shape the 21st century, "which makes it as important as any bilateral relationship in the world."

Cooperation between the two countries makes resolving of the challenges, faced by the two and the world at large, much easier.

President Hu Jintao has remarked that Sino-U.S. relations have significance and influence far beyond their bilateral interactions, and a sound relationship will aid peace, stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region. President Obama reciprocated by saying "on critical issues, whether climate change, economic recovery, nuclear non-proliferation, it is very hard to see how we succeed or China succeeds in our respective goals without working together."

However, there are distracters to the nurturing and building-up of a positive, constructive and comprehensive China-USA relationship. Some seem obviously awed by China's quick growth in prosperity and strength, starting to question China's intentions and going too far to urge for containment of the country.

A former Japanese Prime Minister once opted in India to form an "arc of freedom" in Asia-Pacific to circle China; and lately, an aging politician in Singapore dangled the "warning" in a speech in the United States that if China's rising military and economic might were not "balanced" by America, Uncle Sam may risk losing its global leadership.

It is an untenable allegation that China is not ready or willing to assume responsibility for managing the international system. Beijing has always maintained that, as the biggest developing and the developed countries, China and the United States share broad common interests on the vital issues of peace and development, and shoulder great responsibilities.

China has made increasing contributions to global fight against economic recession, against poverty and starvation, against natural calamities, against climate change, and against spread of dangerous weapons.

It is sensible for both Washington and Beijing to reject the nay-sayers, as cooperation is fruit-bearing and mutually benefiting, while confrontation will bruise each other and ruin the global efforts to tame the earth's woes.

Chinese people have every reason to hail President Obama's statement three day ago in Tokyo that "the rise of a strong, prosperous China can be a source of strengthen for the community of nations."

Sure, there will be irritants to arise in bilateral ties, such as trade spats, disagreements over the value of Chinese yuan and American dollar, and wrangling on human rights. But so long the two respect each other's core interests, bent on maintaining peace and cultivating prosperity, those disputes are not insurmountable. China hopes the United States can quickly exit from the serious economic slowdown since the Great Depression, and regain its pace of sizzling growth.

President Obama, during his four-day stay in China, will have a town-hall meeting with Shanghai university students, tour the Forbidden City and take a trek on the centuries-old Great Wall. Obama once quoted Chinese philosopher Mencius that "A trail through the mountains, if used, becomes a path in a short time, but, if unused, becomes blocked by grass in an equally short time."

He is very right to get to the essence of Chinese interacting with each other. The two important countries need frequent top-level visits to each other's land to read the good wishes of one another, and cement sincerity of good neighborhood.