US President Barack Obama and Chinese Prime Minister Hu Jintao moved today to lay aside a recent round of tensions between Washington and Beijing by committing themselves to working together to combat the global recession, according to dpa. The relationship between China and the United States said Obama following his meeting with Hu "is not only important for the citizens of both our countries, but will help to set the stage for how the world deals with a whole host of challenges in the years to come." Echoing Obama's comments, Hu told reporters: "A sound China-US relationship is not only in the fundamental interest of our two peoples and our two countries, but also contributes to peace, stability and prosperity in the Asian Pacific region and in the world at large." In a joint statement following their talks in London, Obama and Hu said: "The two sides agreed to work together to build a positive, cooperative, and comprehensive US-China relationship for the 21st century and to maintain and strengthen exchanges at all levels. "The Chinese side is willing to work together with the US side to secure even greater progress in the development of the China-US relationship, and I'm willing to establish a good working relationship and personal friendship with President Obama," said Hu in remarks to reporters.
