Climate change will for the first time be included in a range of focal topics during the two-day China-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue, which starts on Wednesday in Washington.

Experts said the impact of the initiative among the world's two largest energy consumers would be profound, and that the two sides have vast potential to team up to address climate change and boost clean energy.

Xie Zhenhua, China's top climate change official, and Todd Stern, the US special envoy for climate change, are leading the climate change working group, which was initiated after the visit of US Secretary of State John Kerry to China in April.