Visiting US President George W. Bush said in Beijing Friday that both China and the United States should encourage bilateral contacts and exchanges to promote mutual understanding.
"It's important for our political leaders to come to China," said Bush, who gave a speech Friday morning at Tsinghua University, one of the most prestigious universities in China.
His working visit to China and discussions with Tsinghua students "help promote" Sino-US relations, Bush said in response to a student's question about what he would do to promote Sino-US relations.
"Many people in my country are very interested in China," he said, adding that these Americans have learned more about China's culture and the Chinese people.
He said that he would keep encouraging such contacts and exchanges between the two countries.
Bush said that he would describe back home what he has seen here to be actually real and China as a great nation that not only has a "great history" but also an "unbelievably exciting future."
The president said that the 2008 Olympic Games would make a significant opportunity for the rest of the world to understand China, which enables more people to come to China and feel the modernization taking place, and many more people will see it on the television.
Bush arrived in Beijing Thursday for a two-day working visit to China.
(Xinhua News Agency February 22, 2002)
