US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called Tuesday for "a comprehensive dialogue" with China, saying president George W. Bush's administration focused too much on economic issues.
"We need a comprehensive dialogue with China," Clinton told her first news briefing since she took charge of US foreign policy last week on behalf of President Barack Obama.
"The strategic dialogue that was begun in the Bush administration turned into an economic dialogue, and that is a very important aspect of our relationship but it is not the only aspect," said the chief US diplomat.
Clinton vowed to work with the White House as well as the Treasury Department and other agencies to design "a more comprehensive approach" in line with China's "important" regional and international role on key issues.
"And I look very much forward to working with my counterparts in the Chinese Government, because I think there … are many opportunities for us to cooperate going forward," Clinton said.
"And given the current global economic crisis, … we have to work our way through that with the minimum amount of damage to global capacity to restart the economy," she said.
"Our economic problems here at home mean that people are being laid off not only here in America, but also in China," Clinton said.
"And so the economy will always be a centerpiece of our relationship, but we want it to be part of a broader agenda, and that's what we're working to achieve," she concluded.
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