Facts have proven that the healthy and stable development of relations between China and the US is in the interests of the peoples of the two countries and is also conducive to peace, stability and development of the world, President Hu Jintao said in New York Tuesday.

Hu made the remarks at the beginning of his meeting with US President George W. Bush, which was open to the press.

Sino-US relations have been developing well on the whole and the two sides have kept close contacts and communication, Hu said.

There have been effective coordination and cooperation between the two sides in such important areas as counter-terrorism, non-proliferation, UN and Asia-Pacific affairs, and global and regional economic growth, as well as on other important issues, Hu said.

He said economic and trade ties, a key component of the China-US relationship, are also the major driving force behind the development of bilateral ties.

Mutual benefit and a win-win situation are undoubtedly the main characteristics in China-US economic and trade relations, Hu said. But given the rapid growth and large scale concerning the development of their trade ties, it is inevitable for some frictions to occur, Hu added.

China does not seek a huge trade surplus with the US, Hu said, adding that China stands ready to work together with the US side to take practical measures to expand imports from the US so as to gradually resolve the trade imbalance between the two countries.

He also said China will reinforce the protection of intellectual property rights, make greater efforts to crack down on violations in this regard in various forms and protect the legitimate rights of relevant proprietors in the US and all other countries.

Hu also noted that a proper settlement of the Taiwan issue is the key to the healthy and stable development of Sino-US relations. He spoke highly of the US stand President Bush reiterated on many occasions that the US will stick to its one-China policy, abide by the three Sino-US Joint communiqués and oppose "Taiwan independence."

Hu expressed the hope that the US will join China in making positive efforts to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits and oppose "Taiwan independence."

Hu said he is ready to work with President Bush to promote the comprehensive development of constructive cooperative relations between the two countries.

Hu said China always stands for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the peaceful settlement of the Korean nuclear issue through dialogue and the maintenance of peace and stability of the peninsula and Northeast Asia as a whole.

China is willing to boost bilateral consultation and cooperation with the US side to achieve fresh progress in the second phase of the fourth-round six-party talks, Hu said.

Hu, on behalf of the Chinese government and people, once again voiced deep sympathy and condolences to the US government and people over the human and property losses in the southern disaster-stricken states hit by Hurricane Katrina.

For his part, Bush said he looked forward to the talks with Hu.

The two sides will discuss many issues of common concern, such as economy and the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, Bush added.

Hu arrived in New York on Tuesday afternoon to attend the summit on the 60th anniversary of the UN.

(Xinhua News Agency September 14, 2005)