COMMON GROUND

Obama: China's Rise 'Good for America'

Presidents agree on trade, cool on rights.

At a joint press conference during Hu Jintao's first official state visit to the United States, Obama and the Chinese president emphasized the strong ties and common ground between the two countries, particularly on trade and fighting terrorism, while underplaying divisive human rights issues. Hu said China and the U.S should "respect each other's sovereignty, territorial integrity and development interests,” and refused to respond to an American reporter’s question on differences between the two countries on human rights. Obama said, "I absolutely believe China's peaceful rise is good for the world, and it's good for America,” highlighting that China had become a top market for U.S. exports that support half a million American jobs. U.S. and Chinese companies have also struck a $45 billion exports deal.