Hailing that the United States and China have built a fruitful relationship with a stable foundation, Rice said the cooperation can help better resolve the complicated and difficult issues in the international system.

The two sides have made continuous progress in strategic economic dialogue, the strategic dialogue and cooperation in various fields, which helped both sides handle specific issues from a perspective concerning the overall situation, Rice said.

She said the United States was ready to continue to consolidate the basis of the two countries' relations and promote the development of bilateral ties.

Rice arrived in Beijing on Tuesday morning for a two-day visit at the invitation of Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi. She held talks with Yang this morning.

(Xinhua News Agency February 27, 2008)