Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/obama-calls-for-deeper-u-s-china-economic-relationship Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript President Barack Obama stressed the importance of new strategic and economic dialogue between the United States and China. Margaret Warner reports on the beginning of the talks and what they mean for international relations between the two countries. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. MARGARET WARNER: Washington drew an unprecedented gathering today of scores of U.S. and Chinese cabinet ministers and their deputies.Welcoming them at the Ronald Reagan Building, President Obama stressed the importance of this new strategic and economic dialogue between the two countries. U.S. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: We can't predict with certainty what the future will bring, but we can be certain about the issues that will define our times.And we also know this: The relationships between the United States and China will shape the 21st century, which makes it as important as any bilateral relationship in the world. That really must underpin our partnership; that is the responsibility that together we bear. MARGARET WARNER: The president said he had no illusion that the U.S. and China would agree on every issue, but said that made ongoing dialogue all the more important.China's state councilor, Dai Bingguo, also acknowledged differences, but said China and the U.S. are partners on many fronts, including dealing with the economic crisis.DAI BINGGUO, state councilor, China (through translator): We're actually in the same big boat that has been hit by fierce wind and huge waves. With our interests interconnected, sharing will and woe, and what we can do is to follow the trend of the development of our times, try to cross the stormy water together as passengers of this boat, to seek harmonious coexistence and willing cooperation. MARGARET WARNER: The U.S.-China dialogue of the Bush years was dominated by economics. This new one, led by Treasury Secretary Geithner and Secretary of State Clinton, covers a wide range of bilateral and global issues.Kenneth Lieberthal of the Brookings Institution says it was high time to integrate the different issues into one dialogue.