Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping arrived in Washington Monday afternoon, kicking off his official visit to the United States.

Xi made the visit as guest of U.S. Vice President Joe Biden.

In a written statement issued upon arrival at the airport, Xi said the purpose of his visit is to implement the important consensus reached by President Hu Jintao and President Barack Obama during Hu's visit to the United States in January last year and to advance the building of the China-U.S. cooperative partnership based on mutual respect and mutual benefit.

"I have brought with me the sincere greetings of President Hu Jintao and the Chinese people to the American people," he said.

Forty years ago, he said, thanks to the common effort of the older generation of Chinese and American leaders, the door of exchange was reopened between China and the United States, marked by then U.S. President Richard Nixon's visit to China and the issuance of the Shanghai Communique.

"Since then, our relations have moved forward in spite of ups and downs. This has brought enormous benefits to our two countries and two peoples, and has had a positive, far-reaching impact on peace, stability and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region and the world at large," he said.

As the international situation experiences complex and profound changes, China and the United States have more extensive common interests and shoulder more important common responsibilities, he said.

"Whether we can seize opportunities, tackle challenges and build a cooperative partnership at the new historical starting point matters to the future of our two countries and the world as a whole," he said.

"This is what I would like to explore with my American hosts in an active and practical manner during the visit, so that we can jointly promote the sustained, healthy and stable development of our relations in the new era," he said.

Xi's U.S. tour has attracted worldwide attention. Sources said that besides attending a series of high-level talks and meetings in Washington, he will also travel to Iowa in U.S. Midwest and Los Angeles on the west coast.

The United States is the first leg of Xi's three-nation tour. He will also visit Ireland and Turkey.

(Xinhua News Agency February 14, 2012)