High-level officials attend the seventh China-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) and the sixth China-US High-Level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange (CPE) in Washington DC, the United States, June 23, 2015. China and the United States opened their annual high-level talks here Tuesday to deepen cooperation in strategic and economic issues and further promote people-to-people exchanges. [Photo/Xinhua]

Biden reiterated the US stance of welcoming China's rise and emphasized the importance of managing areas of disagreements to build a long and sustainable relationship.

He also praised China's contribution in many areas, including climate change, the nuclear issue in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, China's role in the UN and UN peacekeeping and working with the US to combat the deadly Ebola virus in West Africa.

Kerry, who arrived at the State Department on crutches following his recent bike accident in France, said the US is particularly looking forward to Xi's upcoming visit.

"We are excited about the prospect of cooperation between the two nations," he said, adding that this will help other countries when they see China and the US working together.

While the dialogue and consultation have been hailed by both countries as an effective way to expand cooperation and manage differences, they have also been used to pave the way for fruitful visits by the presidents of the two nations.

In Beijing in November, Xi and Obama reached landmark deals on climate change as well as on visa extensions and military confidence-building.

Ahead of Tuesday's opening ceremony, senior civilian and military officials from the two countries met in Washington on Monday for the fifth China-US Strategic Security Dialogue.

They discussed a host of important issues and exchanged views on strategic and comprehensive security topics of common concern. The Chinese delegation described the talks as being conducted in a "candid, practical and constructive way."

Tao Wenzhao, a senior researcher at the Institute of American Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said both countries have "cooled down" over the South China Sea issue.

Jeffrey Bader, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and former special assistant to Obama for national security affairs, said he believed the two countries should engage and cooperate with each other more, and not less as suggested in some quarters.

Wang Xu in Beijing contributed to this story.

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