Jiang said since his last meeting with US President George W. Bush at Crawford in the United States last year, the two countries had identified more common interests and wider areas of cooperation.

Jiang met with visiting US Secretary of State Colin Powell in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Monday afternoon. The two discussed the Iraq issue and the nuclear issue in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Jiang said over more than the past decade, China-US relations had continued to develop amid ups and downs. He said there were several important factors underlying the progress in bilateral relations.

Firstly, the two sides should proceed from the whole international situation and take a long-term, strategic approach to bilateral relations, he said.

Secondly, the two countries should continuously broaden mutual understanding and expand mutual trust.

Thirdly, the two sides should acknowledge and respect their differences, so they could find and expand areas where their interests meet, he said.

Fourthly, both sides should adhere to the three Sino-US joint communiqu?s and properly handle the Taiwan issue. Only in this way could China-US relations overcome various difficulties and keep moving forward, President Jiang said.

Powell conveyed President Bush's greetings to Jiang. He highly praised the current momentum in US-China relations. He said great changes had taken place in the international situation, and the two countries had jointly overcome the difficulties that once hampered bilateral relations, broadening the scope of US-China cooperation. He said the United States wished to further expand cooperative ties with China.

On the Taiwan issue, Powell said the United States understood China's stance and would stick to the one-China policy.

Jiang asked Powell to convey his greetings to President Bush. Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan attended the meeting.

(Xinhua News Agency February 24, 2003)