Visiting Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong has put forward a series of proposals to promote people-to-people and cultural exchanges between China and the United States, officials with her delegation said Thursday.

Advancing the Sino-U.S. cooperative partnership demands the broad participation from the two peoples, Liu said in a speech delivered Wednesday at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She urged both sides to take concrete measures to strengthen people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

The two sides must consolidate the social foundation of bilateral friendship by promoting the mutual understanding and trust between the two peoples and nurturing the public support for long-term friendship between the two countries, she said.

The state councilor called for the two countries to forge the spirit of mutual respect, openness, and inclusiveness in the people-to-people exchanges, treat others as equals, seek common ground while reserving differences.

She also proposed carrying out wide-ranging exchange activities with clear priorities, deepening exchanges in the fields of education, science, technology, culture, sports, women and youth.

The two sides should be open-mined and create the conditions to facilitate both official and non-officials exchanges involving schools, enterprises, communities and various other institutions, Liu said, adding that universities, where diverse civilizations meet and blend, should take on greater responsibilities in China-U.S. people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

She spoke highly of the contributions MIT has made in promoting China-U.S. educational and cultural exchanges, as well as enhancing the mutual understanding and friendship between the two peoples.

During her speech, Liu also highlighted the importance China attaches to its relations with the U.S., and gave a detailed introduction about China's 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) for socioeconomic development.

After the speech, she answered questions by MIT teachers and students on topics including the outlook of China-U.S. people-to- people exchanges, the comparison between the two countries' education systems, and professional ethics for scientists.

Susan Hockfield, president of MIT, said that Liu's speech provided rich information for the university's teachers and students to have a comprehensive understanding of China.

MIT has strengthened its cooperation with China in recent years, jointly launched many innovative programs which benefited the university a lot, she said, adding that MIT is hoping to deepen its cooperation with Chinese universities.