President Hu Jintao delivers a speech during the opening ceremony of the China-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue at the Diaoyutai Guesthouse in Beijing May 3, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING - Chinese President Hu Jintao on Thursday called on China and the United States to expand common ground and properly deal with their differences.

Hu made the remarks when addressing the Opening Session of the Fourth Round of the China-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue, which was entitled Promote Win-Win Cooperation and Build a New Type of Relations Between Major Countries.

"To build a new type of relations between China and the United States, we need to act in a spirit of equality and mutual understanding," he said, noting that given different national conditions, it is impossible for China and the United States to see eye to eye on every issue.

He said the two sides must know how to respect each other, be good at expanding common ground and make the pie of their converging interests bigger.

"We should approach our differences in a correct way, and respect and accommodate each other's interests and concerns," he said.

He called on the two sides to properly manage differences through dialogues and exchanges and by improving mutual understanding so that these differences will not undermine the larger interests of China-US relations.