US President Barack Obama said Monday that he looks foward to visiting China and knowing Chinese leaders and people better.

US President Barack Obama (C) delivers a speech while Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan (2nd L), State Councilor Dai Bingguo (1st L), US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (2nd R) and US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner (1st R) listen during the opening ceremony of the China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) in Washington, the United States, July 27, 2009. The China-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED), the first of its kind between the world's biggest developing country and biggest developed country, opened here on Monday.[Zhang Yan/Xinhua]

"I look forward to carrying this effort (sustained cooperation between the United States and China) forward through my first visit to China, where I hope to come to know better your leaders, your people, and your majestic country," he said at the the opening session of the first round of US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED).

"I believe in a future where China is a strong, prosperous and successful member of the community of nations; a future when our nations are partners out of necessity, but also out of opportunity," said the president.

(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2009)