The administration of U.S. President Barack Obama should quickly establish the right mechanisms to guide and coordinate China policy and effectively engage its Chinese counterparts, a U.S. scholar said on Thursday.

In an article published in The Washington Times, Drew Thompson, director of China Studies at the Nixon Center, said keeping the U.S.-China relationship on an even keel is "vitally important" for both countries and will be particularly tricky in the midst of a global financial crisis.

"Small missteps threaten to upset an otherwise positive relationship, increasing the risk of escalation and ultimately misfortune," he said.

Thompson spoke highly of the bilateral Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED), saying "complementing existing technical trade dialogues, the SED was a high-profile biannual summit that brought together the various economic bureaus from each side to hash out new agreements and resolve thorny differences."

A consolidated, high-level U.S.-China dialogue covering trade and finance, energy, environment, climate change, food safety and public health should be maintained, Thompson said.

"Moreover, a new dialogue that brings other critical matters to the forefront should be introduced," he added.

Thompson suggested that Vice President Joseph Biden play a positive role in U.S.-China relations as the treasury secretary is busy with domestic financial issues.

Biden "is a good candidate to head a frequent, senior, multi-agency economic dialogue that puts the key Cabinet members across the table from their Chinese counterparts on a regular basis," Thompson said.

(Xinhua News Agency February 6, 2009)