The United States and China on Thursday agreed to continue to use and further develop those regular exchange mechanisms established before to facilitate parliamentary exchanges between the two countries.

The consensus was reached during a meeting between Speaker Nancy Pelosi of the US House of Representatives and a delegation of China's National People's Congress (NPC), headed by Chairman Li Zhaoxing of the NPC Foreign Affairs Committee.

Both sides spoke positively of the important roles that the Congress and NPC have played in the growth of China-US relationship through inter-parliamentary exchanges and cooperation.

The two sides also exchanged views over issues of common concern such as energy and climate change.

(Xinhua News Agency March 20, 2009)