Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi and US National Security Advisor Susan Rice both said that the upcoming state visit to the United States by Chinese President Xi Jinping in September is of great significance.

The two met in New York on Wednesday to discuss preparations for the upcoming visit. Rice first announced the US invitation at a talk at the Brookings Institution in Washington early this month.

According to a Chinese Foreign Ministry press release, both Yang and Rice agreed that the teams from the two sides will cooperate and work closely to make all the necessary preparations in order to assure the visit is a success.

Yang said that Xi and Obama have put forward important guidance in further promoting the building of a new type of major country relationship when they had a telephone talk recently.

He said both sides should earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, plan and carry out exchanges at various levels, respect each other's core interest and major concerns, actively explore cooperation in various fields, strengthen communication and coordination on key regional and global issues, and properly handle differences and sensitive issues in order to achieve even greater progress this year in developing China-US relations.

Rice expressed that based on the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, the US side is willing to strengthen exchange and cooperation with the Chinese side in various fields, to cooperate in coping with regional and global challenges, to effectively manage and control differences in a candid and constructive way, and to maintain the good momentum of the bilateral relationship, according to the press release.

Yang reiterated China's stance on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, that the nuclear issue on the peninsula must be solved through dialogue and peaceful means.

Yang also talked of China's principles and stance on the Iranian nuclear issue. He hoped that all the parties involved should bear the overall situation in mind and show flexibility in order to reach a comprehensive agreement as soon as possible.

He said China is willing to continue to play a constructive role in pushing forward the negotiation on the Iranian nuclear issue.

Both Yang and Rice also have discussed issues relating to the 70th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, the post-2015 development agenda, climate change, counterterrorism and the fight against the Ebola virus.

A White House statement released on Wednesday said Rice underscored the importance of expanding tangible cooperation on shared interests - noting the historic joint climate announcement made last year - while addressing areas of disagreement, including cyber issues.

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