The U.S. special representative on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) said on Tuesday that major challenges cannot be successfully addressed without China's involvement.

"Many of the major challenges facing the world today cannot be successfully addressed without the involvement and assistance of China," Stephen Bosworth said at the annual dinner of the New York-based Korea Society.

"The importance of United States-China relations continues to increase, and the Obama administration's objective is to expand a positive, cooperative bilateral relationship that respects the increasingly complex and comprehensive nature of our relations with China.," he said.

Addressing some 300 guests including former secretary of state Henry A. Kissinger, Bosworth said China has become a global economic power, and its political and diplomatic influence continues to increase.

"It (China) is one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, and is a key member of vital regional and international institutions: APEC, the ASEAN Regional Forum, the G20, the WTO, and the Nuclear Suppliers Group," he said.

He said when President Richard Nixon and Secretary Kissinger made the historic visit to China in February 1972, "it would have been hard to imagine the breadth and depth of issues that we now discuss bilaterally with China on a regular basis."

Bosworth, a former U.S. ambassador to South Korea, was named special representative on the DPRK by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during her Seoul visit in Feburary.

He noted that the United States and China have held more than 50 bilateral talks and working group meetings ranging from aviation, counter-terrorism, food safety to non-proliferation.

Bosworth said when President Barack Obama met with President Hu Jintao on the sidelines of the G20 summit in London in April, they had already agreed to seek to build positive, cooperative and comprehensive relations.

"We are planning to launch the Strategic and Economic Dialogue in Washington this July in order to maximize opportunities for cooperation that can be better revealed by a strategic, whole of government approach to the relationship," Bosworth said.

He also praised the recent visits of high-ranking U.S. officials to China, saying they "helped lay the groundwork for the coming new dialogue, which will be based on mutual respect, cooperation and a long-term perspective."

(Xinhua News Agency June 10, 2009)